1 what
/ˈwɑːt/ /ˈwʌt/
pronoun
1 what
/ˈwɑːt/ /ˈwʌt/
pronoun
Britannica Dictionary definition of WHAT
1
a
— used to ask for information about someone or something
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What is your name?
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What are those things on the table?
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What's your family like?
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What happened?
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What [=how much] does it cost?
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“What did she say?” “She said yes.”
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What do you think of my idea?
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What do you want to do tonight?
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“Dad!” “What (do you want)?” “You have a phone call.”
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What (on earth) are you doing?!
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I finished dusting. Now what (should I do)?
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What (should I do) next?
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What else did he say?
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You have money, fame, and a beautiful family. What more could you want?
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b
— used to describe a question
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Please ask them what they want for dinner.
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They asked her what she knew about him.
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I wonder what his motives were.
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2
a
— used to ask someone to say something again because you have not clearly heard or understood it
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What did you say? = (informal) What?
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— often used to show surprise about the thing that someone has just said
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“And then I said that he could go to hell.” “You said what?!”
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She did what?!
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What? I don't believe it. You must be joking!
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b
informal
— used to express surprise, excitement, etc.
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What, no breakfast?
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“Have you heard? They won!” “What!? That's great!”
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3
informal
— used to ask what someone's last name is
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“Her name's Kathy.” “Kathy what?”
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4
a
:
that which
:
the one or ones that
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He has no income but what he gets from his writing. [=he has no income except for the income he gets from his writing]
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“Do you have any other sizes?” “No, only what you see here.”
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b
:
the kind that
:
the same as
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The speech was very much what everyone expected.
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My memory isn't what it used to be. [=it is not as good as it used to be]
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c
:
something that
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The dog is chewing on what appears to be a sock.
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It was the beginning of what turned out to be a long and successful career.
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d
:
the thing or things that
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What you need is a vacation. [=you need a vacation]
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What made me angry was how he treated you. [=it was the way he treated you that made me angry]
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What matters most is your safety. = Your safety is what matters most.
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Romance novels are what she enjoys reading.
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Do what you're told.
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Tell me what you're looking for.
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She is looking for something but I don't know what.
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He knows what he should do.
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— often followed by to + verb
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Stop telling me what to do.
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I don't know what to think/say/believe.
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She has (got) what it takes [=she has the skills and personality] to do the job.
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I'll do what it takes to win.
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You'll never guess what happened to me today. [=you'll be surprised by what happened to me today]
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◊ Guess what is often used to tell someone that you have surprising news. Guess what happened to me today! “Guess what!” “What?” “I bought a new car.” [+] more examples [-] hide examples [+] Example sentences [-] Hide examples
e
:
anything or everything that
:
whatever
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Say what you will, my opinion won't change. [=nothing you can say will change my opinion]
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Take what you need. [=take anything that you need]
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5
informal
— used to direct attention to something that you are about to say
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I'll tell you what I'm going to do: I'm going to let you have it for 30 percent off.
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I'll tell you what. If he thinks I'm cleaning up this mess, he's wrong.
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Tell you what—let's eat out tonight.
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“It's not worth the money.” “You know what—you're right.”
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or what
informal
1
— used to ask about what is happening, being done, etc.
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Is it snowing, raining, or what?
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So are you ready to leave or what?
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2
— used to ask if someone agrees with you
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Is this exciting or what? [=isn't this exciting?; don't you agree that this is exciting?]
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say what
— see 1say
what about
1
a
:
does that include (someone)
:
how about (someone)
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“We're all going to the beach.” “What about Kenny?”
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b
:
how does that affect (someone or something)
:
what should be done about (someone or something)
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“I need to leave—something has come up.” “What about the meeting?” “We can reschedule it.”
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“You can throw this one away.” “What about the others?” “Those I want to keep.”
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(And/But) What about the people who can't afford health insurance?
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2
— used to make a suggestion about what could be done
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What about [=how about] coming with us?
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What about driving to the coast for the weekend?
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We'll need to talk about this again. What about (meeting) next week?
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What about another game? [=would you like to play another game?]
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3
— used to ask someone to tell you something in response to the thing that you have just said
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I like skiing and hiking. What about you? [=what sports do you like?]
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Everyone else is coming. What about you? [=are you coming, too?]
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what…for
:
for what purpose or reason
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What did you do that for? [=why did you do that?]
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What is this switch for? [=what does this switch do?]
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“The principal wants to see you.” “What for?” [=why?]
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— see also what for
what have you
informal
:
any of the other things that might also be mentioned
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You can use the container to hold paper clips, pins, and/or what have you.
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what if
1
:
what would happen if
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What if they find out?
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What if it rains?
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2
:
what does it matter if
— used to say that something is not important
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“He's nice enough, I suppose. But he's poor.” “What if he is poor? I love him!”
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“They might find out.” “So what if they do? I don't care.”
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— see also so what at 3what
what of
1
formal
:
how does that affect (someone or something)
:
what should be done about (someone or something)
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What of [=what about] those who cannot afford health insurance?
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2
:
why does (something) matter
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“Did you approve this request?” “Yes. What of it?” [=so what?]
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what's it to you?
informal
:
why do you want to know
— used to respond in a somewhat angry or annoyed way to a question that you do not want to answer
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“How much do they pay you?” “Why? What's it to you?”
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what's more
:
in addition
:
furthermore
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Her boyfriend is intelligent and handsome; what's more, he respects her.
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what's up?
US, informal
— used as a friendly greeting
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“Hi, Jim. What's up?” “Not much.”
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what's what
informal
:
the true state of things
:
the things that need to be known or understood in order to make good judgments, decisions, etc.
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She knows what's what when it comes to fashion. [=she knows a lot about fashion]
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We need to find out what's what.
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what's with
informal
or
what's up with
1
:
what is the reason for (something)
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(So) what's with the hat? [=why are you wearing that hat?]
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He told me to go away. What's up with that? [=why did he do that?]
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2
:
what is wrong with (someone or something)
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What's with him?
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What's up with you? You look upset.
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I can't figure out what's up with this computer.
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2 what
/ˈwɑːt/ /ˈwʌt/
adjective
2 what
/ˈwɑːt/ /ˈwʌt/
adjective
Britannica Dictionary definition of WHAT
always used before a noun
1
— used to ask someone to indicate the identity or nature of someone or something
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What fool told you that?
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What book did you read?
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What news have you heard from him?
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In what way are these two stories the same?
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We won the war, but at what price? [=did we lose or give up too much in order to win the war?]
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2
— used to say that someone or something is remarkable for having good or bad qualities
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What a good idea!
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What mountains!
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Remember what fun we had?
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What a horrible movie!
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What a beautiful child.
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3
— used to refer to an amount that someone has, uses, etc.
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She gave what money she had [=she gave all the money she had] to the homeless man.
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Give what excuses you will—it makes no difference. [=no excuses that you may give will make any difference]
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He soon gambled away what (little) money he had left.
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We spent what (little) time remained chatting.
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3 what
/ˈwɑːt/ /ˈwʌt/
adverb
3 what
/ˈwɑːt/ /ˈwʌt/
adverb
Britannica Dictionary definition of WHAT
:
in what way
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What [=how] does it matter?
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What does she care? [=why is it important to her?]
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so what
informal
— used to say that something said or done is not important
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She has a glass of wine now and then—so what?
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what with
— used to introduce the part of a sentence that indicates the cause of something
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What with the freezing temperatures, they nearly died.
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What with school and sports, she's always busy.
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Things have been difficult for him lately, what with his wife's illness and all.
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