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.
Candidates with "no knowledge whatsoever of the workflows" are "a lot less appealing for an organization like ours."
From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026
"This is happening in a moderate, manageable way and has no impact whatsoever on climate targets," he said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 6, 2026
“Jameson never bared his teeth, growled at either officer, or otherwise displayed any attempt whatsoever to attack,” the lawsuit stated.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 5, 2026
Because of the harassment, L.H. eventually stopped trying to play any organized sports whatsoever and issued a sworn declaration in the lower courts that she would not try out for sports teams in the future.
From Slate ● Jun. 30, 2026
The bad guys who abide by no societal laws whatsoever but are good at pretending when it suits them.
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
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.
