whatsoever
Americanpronoun
adjective
pronoun
Etymology
Origin of whatsoever
1200–50; Middle English, equivalent to what so whatever ( Old English swā hwæt swā ) + ever ever
Explanation
The word whatsoever is an old-fashioned way to emphasize a point. If you have no clue whatsoever who ate all the ice cream that was in the freezer, it means you truly have no idea at all who the culprit is. If you say that you have no doubt whatsoever that your cousin could be a model, you are placing emphasis on the fact that you're sure she's tall and thin enough to do the job. Whatsoever, originally quuat-so-euere, was first used in the thirteenth century, and while it's rare these days, it eventually led to the more modern and extremely popular word whatever.
Vocabulary lists containing whatsoever
Alex Trebek (1940–2020) Tribute List
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Sugar
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This Week In Words: November 30–December 6, 2019
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“Mrs. Trump played no role whatsoever in organizing the wedding event and was not privy to any aspect of its financial planning.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
During the department’s presentation of the report, one police commissioner, Jeff Skobin, pointed out that demonstrators and journalists who spoke at the meeting felt as though their perspectives weren’t reflected in the report whatsoever.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
Now working part-time, Ken says he has "no regrets whatsoever" about his decision to sell his house and move onto the water.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
It is assigning no value whatsoever to these environmental benefits, thereby ignoring the very health concerns the agency was created to address.
From Slate ● Aug. 2, 2026
Abby eases onto 285 and merges with no difficulty whatsoever.
From "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda" by Becky Albertalli
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
