German

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Etymology

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From Middle High German warumme, war umme, warumbe, war umbe, from Old High German wār umbe. Equivalent to wo (where) +‎ um (in order to, for the purpose of), thus “for what purpose”. Doublet of worum, but with the older vocalism preserved. Compare Dutch waarom, which has both meanings.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /vaˈʁʊm/ (usual)
  • IPA(key): /ˈvaː.ʁʊm/ (never in isolation, but sometimes triggered by the intonation of a sentence)
  • Audio:(file)
  • Rhymes: -ʊm

Adverb

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warum

  1. why; for what reason
    warum ist die Banane krummwhy is the banana bent

Derived terms

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See also

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Further reading

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  • warum” in Duden online
  • warum” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache

Old English

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Noun

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warum

  1. dative plural of waru