whoever
Americanpronoun
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whatever person; anyone that.
Whoever did it should be proud. Ask whoever is there. Tell it to whomever you like.
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no matter who.
I won't do it, whoever asks.
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who? what person? (used to express astonishment, disbelief, disdain, etc.).
Whoever is that? Whoever told you such a thing?
pronoun
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any person who; anyone that
whoever wants it can have it
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no matter who
I'll come round tomorrow, whoever may be here
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an intensive form of who, used in questions
whoever could have thought that?
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informal an unknown or unspecified person
give those to John, or Cathy, or whoever
Etymology
Origin of whoever
Middle English word dating back to 1125–75; see origin at who, ever
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.
Whoever emerges victorious will advance to a last-16 clash against either France or Sweden.
From Barron's • Jun. 29, 2026
Whoever is writing this story in real time, please make it stop.
From Salon • Jun. 17, 2026
Whoever wins must build alliances to complete their term, according to analyst Jeffrey Radzinsky.
From Barron's • Jun. 7, 2026
Whoever manages to maintain their focus best over the next three days will become a first-time Grand Slam champion, which few predicted three weeks ago.
From BBC • Jun. 4, 2026
Whoever was behind all this was someone really powerful.
From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega
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.
