{"loaderData":{"0":null,"0-3":[{"type":"fetchPageData/fulfilled","payload":{"_id":"home-legacy","story":{"created_at":"2023-07-04T15:14:18.526Z","published_at":"2024-05-02T04:05:00.000Z","content":{"heroModule":[{"cta":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/10-interesting-words-from-taylor-swifts-showgirl-album/","text":"Read more.","target":"_self"}],"article":{"name":"10 Interesting Words from Taylor Swift's \"Showgirl\" Album","content":{"topicLabel":"🎶"}},"imageUrl":"https://assets.dictionary.com/home/featured/hero/10-interesting-words-from-taylor-swifts-showgirl-album-20251020.png","description":"Taylor Swift's word choices reveal a songwriter who's not afraid to expand the vocabulary of pop music. Check out some of the most interesting words you'll encounter when you listen to \"The Life of a Showgirl\" album.","subjectLabel":"Today"}],"quizModule":[{"cta":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/learn/quizzes","text":"Go to all quizzes","target":"_self"}],"image":"https://assets.dictionary.com/home/daily-quiz.png","articleLink":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/games/quizzes/swiftie-spotlight-language-of-a-showgirl","text":"Take the full quiz.","target":"_self"}],"subjectLabel":"Quiz","wordpressSlug":"swiftie-spotlight-language-of-a-showgirl","questionNumber":"1"}],"xotdModule":[],"gamesModule":[{"gamesList":[{"name":"Daily Crossword","created_at":"2023-07-04T15:24:23.318Z","published_at":"2024-02-07T05:05:00.000Z","id":336141299,"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/crossword/","text":"Daily Crossword","target":"_self"}],"image":{"id":10215805,"alt":"","name":"","focus":"","title":"","source":"","filename":"https://assets.dictionary.com/home/daily-crossword.png","copyright":"","fieldtype":"asset","meta_data":{},"is_external_url":false},"subscriberLink":""},"slug":"daily-crossword","full_slug":"games/daily-crossword","sort_by_date":null,"position":0,"tag_list":[],"is_startpage":false,"parent_id":336140985,"meta_data":null,"group_id":"013f4974-3fad-4e2b-8aa2-c573ef31f263","first_published_at":"2023-07-04T15:32:55.972Z","release_id":null,"lang":"default","path":null,"alternates":[],"default_full_slug":null,"translated_slugs":null,"_stopResolving":true},{"name":"Hurdle","created_at":"2023-07-07T20:42:46.109Z","published_at":"2024-02-06T05:05:00.000Z","id":337835996,"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://play.dictionary.com/games/todays-hurdle","text":"Hurdle","target":"_self"}],"image":{"id":10215808,"alt":"","name":"","focus":"","title":"","source":"","filename":"https://assets.dictionary.com/home/hurdle.png","copyright":"","fieldtype":"asset","meta_data":{},"is_external_url":false},"subscriberLink":"https://www.dictionary.com/games/hurdle"},"slug":"hurdle","full_slug":"games/hurdle","sort_by_date":null,"position":-30,"tag_list":[],"is_startpage":false,"parent_id":336140985,"meta_data":null,"group_id":"3342f4e9-9403-4609-a956-7cd5eab50dc9","first_published_at":"2023-07-10T17:24:55.648Z","release_id":null,"lang":"default","path":null,"alternates":[],"default_full_slug":null,"translated_slugs":null,"_stopResolving":true},{"name":"Word Puzzle","created_at":"2023-07-04T15:31:56.964Z","published_at":"2023-07-10T17:24:59.422Z","id":336150578,"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/games/word-puzzle","text":"Word Puzzle","target":"_self"}],"image":{"id":10215807,"alt":"","name":"","focus":"","title":"","source":"","filename":"https://assets.dictionary.com/home/word-puzzle.png","copyright":"","fieldtype":"asset","meta_data":{},"is_external_url":false}},"slug":"word-puzzle","full_slug":"games/word-puzzle","sort_by_date":null,"position":-20,"tag_list":[],"is_startpage":false,"parent_id":336140985,"meta_data":null,"group_id":"71792320-7229-4ab6-8558-b3af16f5e557","first_published_at":"2023-07-04T15:32:43.933Z","release_id":null,"lang":"default","path":null,"alternates":[],"default_full_slug":null,"translated_slugs":null,"_stopResolving":true},{"name":"Word Wipe","created_at":"2023-07-04T15:28:02.623Z","published_at":"2024-02-06T05:05:00.000Z","id":336141320,"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://play.dictionary.com/games/word-wipe","text":"Word Wipe","target":"_self"}],"image":{"id":10215806,"alt":"","name":"","focus":"","title":"","source":"","filename":"https://assets.dictionary.com/home/word-wipe.png","copyright":"","fieldtype":"asset","meta_data":{},"is_external_url":false},"subscriberLink":"https://www.dictionary.com/games/word-wipe"},"slug":"word-wipe","full_slug":"games/word-wipe","sort_by_date":null,"position":-10,"tag_list":[],"is_startpage":false,"parent_id":336140985,"meta_data":null,"group_id":"3789fc63-90b3-4407-99f4-fa263d1a3e39","first_published_at":"2023-07-04T15:32:50.947Z","release_id":null,"lang":"default","path":null,"alternates":[],"default_full_slug":null,"translated_slugs":null,"_stopResolving":true}],"description":"Calling all cruciverbalists! Sharpen your mind with crosswords and word games, or take a brain break with your favorite classic games.","subjectLabel":"Games"}],"commonModule":[],"ribbonModule":[],"trendingModule":[{"articles":[{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/name-meanings-in-dictionary/","text":"Is Your Name in the Dictionary? Proper Names With Other Meanings"}]}},{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.thesaurus.com/e/writing/how-to-write-a-scary-story-tips-to-haunt-your-reader/","text":"How to Write a Scary Story: Tips to Haunt Your Readers"}]}},{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/wrack-vs-rack/","text":"\"Racking My Brain\" or \"Wracking My Brain\"?"}]}},{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/pasta-shapes-names/","text":"All the Pasta Shape Names Explained: How Many Do You Know?"}]}},{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/pop-culture/comfort-character/","text":"Who's Your Comfort Character?"}]}}],"subjectLabel":"Trending"}],"newsletterModule":[{"title":"Salutations, logophile!","imageUrl":"https://assets.dictionary.com/home/newsletter.png","description":"Sign up to get everything a word lover could want: word origins, fun facts, and the latest language trends.","subjectLabel":"Newsletter"}],"largeRibbonModule":[],"recirculationModule":[{"articles":[{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/news-from-october-18-october-24-2025/","text":"This Week in Words: News from October 18–October 24, 2025"}],"topicLabel":"This Week in Words 🌎"}},{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/football-terms/","text":"28 Football Terms to Make You Sound Like a Pro"}],"topicLabel":"Sports 🏈"}},{"content":{"link":[{"url":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/slang/gen-z-stare/","text":"What Is the Gen Z Stare?"}],"topicLabel":"Slang"}}],"subjectLabel":"Featured"}]},"slug":"shared-homepage","full_slug":"homepages/shared-homepage","sort_by_date":null,"position":0,"tag_list":[],"is_startpage":false,"parent_id":336140983,"meta_data":null,"group_id":"c7ed375b-9129-448c-aeec-9f52e3fef270","first_published_at":"2023-07-04T18:23:43.845Z","release_id":null,"lang":"default","path":null,"alternates":[],"default_full_slug":null,"translated_slugs":null}},"meta":{"requestId":"FjSTtQd6gUDalFYYMQTX4","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"luna/fetchExampleSentences/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"nlp":[{"id":"6681228-48","sentence":"She’s trying to rise above party labels — even as national Democrats and their allies pour millions into her campaign — and focus almost entirely on the whys and wherefores of the 3rd District.","source":{"sourceName":"Los Angeles Times","publicationDate":"2024-10-27T04:00:00.000Z","publication_date":"2024-10-27T04:00:00.000Z","url":"https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2024-10-27/2024-election-congress-washington-state-democrat-marie-gluesenkamp-perez","abbreviation":"nlp","author":"Mark Z. Barabak","title":"This Democrat pulled off one of the country's biggest upsets. Can she win again in Trump country?"},"offsets":[153,172]},{"id":"6365144-69","sentence":"Mescal doesn’t spell out the whys and wherefores of his character’s pain.","source":{"sourceName":"Los Angeles Times","publicationDate":"2023-01-23T05:00:00.000Z","publication_date":"2023-01-23T05:00:00.000Z","url":"https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2023-01-23/paul-mescal-aftersun-acting-oscars-2023","abbreviation":"nlp","author":"Charles McNulty","title":"Commentary: Oscar or not, Paul Mescal makes screen acting look natural again"},"offsets":[29,48]},{"id":"5684217-68","sentence":"Any hint would be a giant step toward understanding the whys and wherefores of our own origins.","source":{"sourceName":"New York Times","publicationDate":"2021-02-02T05:00:00.000Z","publication_date":"2021-02-02T05:00:00.000Z","url":"https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/02/science/webb-telescope-women-astronomy.html","abbreviation":"nlp","title":"The Webb Telescope, NASA’s Golden Surfer, Is Almost Ready, Again"},"offsets":[56,75]},{"id":"5290993-37","sentence":"As in most of Tim and Eric’s sketch humor, there are few whys and wherefores.","source":{"sourceName":"New York Times","publicationDate":"2020-03-26T04:00:00.000Z","publication_date":"2020-03-26T04:00:00.000Z","url":"https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/26/arts/television/beef-house-tim-and-eric-sitcom.html","abbreviation":"nlp","title":"On ‘Beef House,’ Family Sitcoms Get the Tim and Eric Treatment"},"offsets":[57,76]},{"id":"5213126-71","sentence":"It takes a while before kids interrogate the whys and wherefores of their family’s dynamics.","source":{"sourceName":"Slate","publicationDate":"2020-02-04T05:00:00.000Z","publication_date":"2020-02-04T05:00:00.000Z","url":"https://slate.com/human-interest/2020/02/toxic-mother-in-law-toothbrush-care-and-feeding.html","abbreviation":"nlp","author":"Rumaan Alam","title":"Dear Care and Feeding: My Mother-in-Law Uses My Toothbrush"},"offsets":[45,64]}],"tdb":[],"gbg":[]}},"meta":{"arg":{"word":"whys-and-wherefores"},"requestId":"sz2K60lW6194IbaPh-hhA","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"dcomWeb/fetchThesaurusRelatedEntries/fulfilled","payload":{"slug":"whys-and-wherefores"},"meta":{"arg":"whys-and-wherefores","requestId":"3vq7JZOLT61RbIc4h1ONy","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"dcomWeb/fetchThesaurusEntry/fulfilled","payload":[{"entries":[{"createDate":"2021-05-09T14:58:29Z","headword":{"normalizedForm":"whys and wherefores","standardForm":"whys and wherefores"},"id":"6097f895000000035e00d07f","lang":"en","modifyDate":"2021-05-09T14:58:29Z","ngrams":{"allLetters":false,"forward":"whysandwherefores","groups":[" "," ","a","d","e","ee","eee","f","h","hh","n","o","r","rr","s","ss","w","ww","y"],"numLetters":17,"reverse":"seroferehwdnasyhw","subwordTokens":["whys and wherefores","hys and wherefores","ys and wherefores","s and wherefores"," and wherefores","and wherefores","nd wherefores","d wherefores"," wherefores","wherefores","herefores","erefores","refores","efores","fores","ores","res","es","s"]},"normalizedLetter":"w","ordinal":1,"partOfSpeechBlocks":[{"definitions":[{"id":"6097f895000000035e00d084","ordinal":1,"shortText":"reasons","source":"random-house","synonyms":[{"entry":{"headword":"causes","id":"6097fae400000000d2003167","slug":"causes"},"similarity":10},{"entry":{"headword":"details","id":"6097fb7f00000000ba00b182","slug":"details"},"similarity":10},{"entry":{"headword":"explanations","id":"6097fbb500000003be003d6b","slug":"explanations"},"similarity":10},{"entry":{"headword":"justifications","id":"6097f6b8000000024200f00b","slug":"justifications"},"similarity":10},{"entry":{"headword":"whys","id":"6097f895000000035e00d074","slug":"whys"},"similarity":10}]}],"id":"6097f895bb1f88f7c11e33ae","ordinal":1,"partOfSpeech":"noun"}],"slug":"whys-and-wherefores","source":"random-house","type":"tcom"}],"type":"tcom"}],"meta":{"arg":"whys-and-wherefores","requestId":"lacqgK59J_VJV_pfJLUvA","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"dcomWeb/fetchDictionaryEntry/fulfilled","payload":[{"entries":[{"createDate":"2012-01-01T00:00:00Z","headword":{"normalizedForm":"whys and wherefores","standardForm":"whys and wherefores"},"id":"4effa20069646d2100171e60","lang":"en","modifyDate":"2012-01-01T00:00:00Z","ngrams":{"allLetters":false,"forward":"whysandwherefores","groups":[" "," ","a","d","e","ee","eee","f","h","hh","n","o","r","rr","s","ss","w","ww","y"],"numLetters":17,"reverse":"seroferehwdnasyhw","subwordTokens":["whys and wherefores","hys and wherefores","ys and wherefores","s and wherefores"," and wherefores","and wherefores","nd wherefores","d wherefores"," wherefores","wherefores","herefores","erefores","refores","efores","fores","ores","res","es","s"]},"normalizedLetter":"w","ordinal":1,"partOfSpeechBlocks":[{"definitions":[{"id":"4effa20080539d28583553a9","ordinal":1,"source":"american-heritage","text":"All the underlying causes and reasons, as in She went into the whys and wherefores of the adoption agency's rules and procedures. This idiom today is a redundancy since why and wherefore mean the same thing. Formerly, however, why indicated the reason for something and wherefore how it came to be. [c. 1600]"}],"id":"4effa20080539d28583553aa","ordinal":1}],"slug":"whys-and-wherefores","source":"american-heritage","type":"idiom"}],"type":"idiom"}],"meta":{"arg":"whys-and-wherefores","requestId":"FJgFf-viX5G4U1brgbnPQ","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"fetchSpellSuggestions/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"lunaWithSlug":[{"displayForm":"whys and wherefores","slug":"whys-and-wherefores"},{"displayForm":"his-and-her","slug":"his-and-her"},{"displayForm":"wood-and-water joey","slug":"wood-and-water-joey"}],"tunaWithSlug":[{"displayForm":"whys and wherefores","slug":"whys-and-wherefores"},{"displayForm":"why and wherefore","slug":"why-and-wherefore"}]}},"meta":{"arg":{"word":"whys-and-wherefores"},"requestId":"FhRhBGFDoZzxkbbSEh45q","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}}]},"actionData":null,"errors":null}

whys and wherefores

Example Sentences