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British

whose

[ hooz ]

/ huz /

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pronoun

(the possessive case of who used as an adjective): Whose umbrella did I take? Whose is this one?

(the possessive case of which used as an adjective): a word whose meaning escapes me; an animal whose fur changes color.

the one or ones belonging to what person or persons: Whose painting won the third prize?

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Set some time apart to test your bracket symbol knowledge, and see if you can keep your parentheses, squares, curlies, and angles all straight!

Question 1 of 7

Let’s start with some etymology: What are the origins of the typographical word “bracket”?

First appeared around 1750, and is related to the French word “braguette” for the name of codpiece armor.

First appeared in 1610, based on the French word “baguette” for the long loaf of bread.

First appeared in 1555, and is related to the French word “raquette” for a netted bat.

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Origin of whose

First recorded before 900; Middle English whos, early Middle English hwās; replacing hwas, Old English hwæs, genitive of interrogative pronoun hwā who

usage note for whose

2. Sometimes the phrase of which is used as the possessive of which: Chicago is a city of which the attractions are many or Chicago is a city the attractions of which are many. The use of this phrase can often seem awkward or pretentious, whereas whose sounds more idiomatic: Chicago is a city whose attractions are many.

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH whose

who's, whose

Words nearby whose

whorled, whort, whortleberry, who's, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, whose, whosesoever, whosever, whosis, whoso, whosoever

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Example sentences from the Web for whose

Then add in all bored people, as well as people whose job it is to report on celebrities.
Sia and Shia LaBeouf’s Pedophilia Nontroversy Over ‘Elastic Heart’|Marlow Stern|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Cassandra, whose hair has already begun to fall out from her court-mandated chemotherapy, could face a similar outcome.
Should Teens Have The Right To Die?|Brandy Zadrozny|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Isolated lesbians learned that there were other women like them via books whose covers aimed to titillate heterosexual men.
How Pulp Fiction Saved Literature|Wendy Smith|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Duke was a state representative whose neo-Nazi alliances were disgorged in media reports during his run for governor in 1991.
The Price of Steve Scalise’s Silence|Jason Berry|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST

The gentleman was listed as Orthodox and kosher, which is way too religious for my friend whose JSwipe account I was test-driving.
My Week on Jewish Tinder|Emily Shire|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Bernard stood there face to face with Mrs. Vivian, whose eyes seemed to plead with him more than ever.
Confidence|Henry James
A Yankee, whose face had been mauled in a pot-house brawl, assured General Jackson that he had received his scars in battle.
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun;|Various
Polavieja, as everybody knew, was the chosen executive of the friars, whose only care was to secure their own position.
The Philippine Islands|John Foreman
Was a pupil of Caspar Netscher of Heidelberg, whose little pictures are of fabulous value.
Women in the fine arts, from the Seventh Century B.C. to the Twentieth Century A.D.|Clara Erskine Clement
The men, whose poniards his sword parried, had recourse to fire-arms, and two pistols were fired at him.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter

British Dictionary definitions for whose

whose

/ (huːz) /

determiner

of whom? belonging to whom? used in direct and indirect questionsI told him whose fault it was; whose car is this?
(as pronoun)whose is that?

of whom; belonging to whom; of which; belonging to which: used as a relative pronouna house whose windows are broken

Word Origin for whose

Old English hwæs, genitive of hwā who and hwæt what

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

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