How to Say ‘Why’ in French
Pourquoi
poor-kwah
[poor-kwah]
💬 Usage Tip: A must-know critique word. Expect to hear it a lot! Pronounced roughly poor-kwah.
🇫🇷 In France: French teaching culture often encourages justification, so Pourquoi ? is not rude here—it is a serious invitation to explain your choices.
Phrase Breakdown
Pourquoi
[poor-kwah]
why
Question word used to ask for a reason or justification. Very useful when explaining artistic choices.
Pourquoi as-tu choisi cette forme dans ton projet ?
Why did you choose this form in your project?
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