whole
[hohl]
- comprising the full quantity, amount, extent, number, etc., without diminution or exception; entire, full, or total: He ate the whole pie. They ran the whole distance.
- containing all the elements properly belonging; complete: We have a whole set of antique china.
- undivided; in one piece: to swallow a thing whole.
- Mathematics. integral, or not fractional.
- not broken, damaged, or impaired; intact: Thankfully, the vase arrived whole.
- uninjured or unharmed; sound: He was surprised to find himself whole after the crash.
- pertaining to all aspects of human nature, especially one's physical, intellectual, and spiritual development: education for the whole person.
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- the whole assemblage of parts or elements belonging to a thing; the entire quantity, account, extent, or number: He accepted some of the parts but rejected the whole.
- a thing complete in itself, or comprising all its parts or elements.
- an assemblage of parts associated or viewed together as one thing; a unitary system.
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- as a whole, all things included or considered; altogether: As a whole, the relocation seems to have been beneficial.
- on/upon the whole,
- in view of all the circumstances; after consideration.
- disregarding exceptions; in general: On the whole, the neighborhood is improving.
- out of whole cloth, without foundation in fact; fictitious: a story made out of whole cloth.
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Origin of whole
Synonyms
See more synonyms for whole on Thesaurus.com1. undiminished, integral, complete. 5. unimpaired, perfect. 8. totality, aggregate. Whole, total mean the entire or complete sum or amount. The whole is all there is; every part, member, aspect; the complete sum, amount, quantity of anything, not divided; the entirety: the whole of one's property, family. Total also means whole, complete amount, or number, but conveys the idea of something added together or added up: The total of their gains amounted to millions.
Antonyms
1. partial. 8. part.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for wholeness
Contemporary Examples
It is against their wholeness that the incomplete impressions of the recent past or present are juxtaposed.
What has been grossly overlooked throughout age immemorial is that both aspects need each other for wholeness!
“Where there is no desire or pursuit, there is no wholeness, but there are satisfactory lesser states, fragments,” Vidal wrote.
Historical Examples
Why should the wholeness of that wild youth of his change to this?
The House of PrideJack London
In direct praxis, the wholeness of the being is externalized.
The Civilization of IlliteracyMihai Nadin
The elements of beauty are design, wholeness, and significance.
The Gate of AppreciationCarleton Noyes
That wholeness and roundness, in which she had rejoiced, had gone from her altogether.
The Vicar of BullhamptonAnthony Trollope
In these there is a wholeness, a strength, and a rapture, which still demands an explanation.
The Sense of BeautyGeorge Santayana
whole
- containing all the component parts necessary to form a total; completea whole apple
- constituting the full quantity, extent, etc
- uninjured or undamaged
- healthy
- having no fractional or decimal part; integrala whole number
- of, relating to, or designating a relationship established by descent from the same parents; fullwhole brothers
- out of whole cloth US and Canadian informal entirely without a factual basis
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- in an undivided or unbroken pieceto swallow a plum whole
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- all the parts, elements, etc, of a thing
- an assemblage of parts viewed together as a unit
- a thing complete in itself
- as a whole considered altogether; completely
- on the whole
- taking all things into consideration
- in general
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Word Origin
Old English hāl, hǣl; related to Old Frisian hāl, hēl, Old High German heil, Gothic hails; compare hale 1
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for wholeness
whole
n.
"entire body or company; the full amount," late 14c., from whole (adj.).
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whole
adj.
Old English hal "entire, unhurt, healthy," from Proto-Germanic *khailaz "undamaged" (cf. Old Saxon hel, Old Norse heill, Old Frisian hal, Middle Dutch hiel, Dutch heel, Old High German, German heil "salvation, welfare"), from PIE *koilas (cf. Old Church Slavonic celu "whole, complete;" see health). The spelling with wh- developed early 15c. The sense in whole number is from early 14c. For phrase whole hog, see hog.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
whole
(hōl)- Not wounded, injured, or impaired; sound or unhurt.
- Having been restored; healed.
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- An entity or system made up of interrelated parts.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Idioms and Phrases with wholeness
whole
In addition to the idioms beginning with whole
- whole ball of wax, the
- whole hog
- whole kit and caboodle, the
- whole megillah
- whole new ballgame, a
- whole nine yards, the
- whole shebang
also see:
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The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.