"How come" and "Why" are the same?

nick   Sun Jan 04, 2009 3:58 am GMT
How come you didn't call me last night?=Why didn't you call me last night?
Maybe there is slight difference.
Jago   Sun Jan 04, 2009 4:07 am GMT
I think you need to elucidate a little.
I'm unsure of what you're trying to ask!
nick   Sun Jan 04, 2009 4:10 am GMT
I mean can I use "how come" instead "why"?
Does it matter?   Sun Jan 04, 2009 4:20 am GMT
Are there any moderators at Antimoon? Just Tom and MJD now?
Jago   Sun Jan 04, 2009 4:24 am GMT
It's perfectly acceptable to use "how come" instead of "why" in British English but the former will tend to sound more colloquial.
guest2   Sun Jan 04, 2009 4:58 am GMT
Same for American English.
HappyHippo's   Sun Jan 04, 2009 7:18 pm GMT
How come = Why is that? = emphatic
Why? = simple
Caspian   Sun Jan 04, 2009 8:10 pm GMT
Incidentally, it seems to be the same in Afrikaans, where one can say 'Hoekom'.
Skippy   Mon Jan 05, 2009 4:34 pm GMT
They are completely interchangeable, in my opinion. "Why" is the preferred usage, but you hear "how come" more frequently, at least in the parts of the US I've lived.