A: Wish me luck. B: What for?

0Hi,02br
02br
00Both versions are OK.02br
02br
00Clive0-

0In American colloquial English, "What for?" is much more common.0-

0 To me, "what for?" means "why" (admittedly in a kind of slangy, colloquial way) and isn't really equivalent to "for what," although often either will serve the purpose. 02br
00 For example, if my friend says she has to go to the grocery, I could ask "What for?" or "For what?" and get the same answer - "We're out of milk." 02br
00 But if she says she needs to start doing

0Do you think02br
02br
00"What for?" is a short for "What is that for?"02br
02br
00"For what?" is just the completion for that sentence, you know, usually people may say "Wish me luck for blah blah," so we ask "for what?".02br
02br
00Thanks a lot.0-

0 01blockquote

01cite10Osee12cite10Do you think12br
12br
10"What for?" is a short for "What is that for?"12br
12blockquote

10 No. They seem completely different to me.02br
00"What for?" is "Why?"02br
00"What did you do that for?" = "Why did you do that?" 02br
00"What

0Since 01i00what for 02i00means 01i00why，02i00is there any specific reason for people to use 01i00what for02i00 instead of 01i00why02i00?01i00 02i00 I am asking about when to say "what for" and when "why." Thanks a lot. 01blockquote

01cite10CalifJim12

0What ... for? is in a lower register, i.e., closer to slang. Since the two components are separated, it's more common to say Why? if the sentence is very long. But you'll hear the What ... for? structure a lot in shorter sentences. Also, What ... for? concentrates more on situations where you want to know the purpose of an action, and less on those where you want to know the reason for