AskDefine | Define where

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The Collaborative Dictionary

Wher \Wher\, Where \Where\, pron. & conj. [See Whether.] Whether. [Sometimes written whe'r.] [Obs.] --Piers Plowman. [1913 Webster] Men must enquire (this is mine assent), Wher she be wise or sober or dronkelewe. --Chaucer. [1913 Webster]
Where \Where\, adv. [OE. wher, whar, AS. hw?r; akin to D. waar, OS. hw?r, OHG. hw[=a]r, w[=a]r, w[=a], G. wo, Icel. and Sw. hvar, Dan. hvor, Goth. hwar, and E. who; cf. Skr. karhi when. [root]182. See Who, and cf. There.] [1913 Webster]
At or in what place; hence, in what situation, position, or circumstances; -- used interrogatively. [1913 Webster] God called unto Adam, . . . Where art thou? --Gen. iii.
[1913 Webster] Note: See the Note under What, pron.,
[1913 Webster]
At or in which place; at the place in which; hence, in the case or instance in which; -- used relatively. [1913 Webster] She visited that place where first she was so happy. --Sir P. Sidney. [1913 Webster] Where I thought the remnant of mine age Should have been cherished by her childlike duty. --Shak. [1913 Webster] Where one on his side fights, thousands will fly. --Shak. [1913 Webster] But where he rode one mile, the dwarf ran four. --Sir W. Scott. [1913 Webster]
To what or which place; hence, to what goal, result, or issue; whither; -- used interrogatively and relatively; as, where are you going? [1913 Webster] But where does this tend? --Goldsmith. [1913 Webster] Lodged in sunny cleft, Where the gold breezes come not. --Bryant. [1913 Webster] Note: Where is often used pronominally with or without a preposition, in elliptical sentences for a place in which, the place in which, or what place. [1913 Webster] The star . . . stood over where the young child was. --Matt. ii.
[1913 Webster] The Son of man hath not where to lay his head. --Matt. viii.
[1913 Webster] Within about twenty paces of where we were. --Goldsmith. [1913 Webster] Where did the minstrels come from? --Dickens. [1913 Webster] Note: Where is much used in composition with preposition, and then is equivalent to a pronoun. Cf. Whereat, Whereby, Wherefore, Wherein, etc. [1913 Webster] Where away (Naut.), in what direction; as, where away is the land? [1913 Webster] Syn: See Whither. [1913 Webster]
Where \Where\, n. Place; situation. [Obs. or Colloq.] [1913 Webster] Finding the nymph asleep in secret where. --Spenser. [1913 Webster] Whereabout
Where \Where\, conj. Whereas. [1913 Webster] And flight and die is death destroying death; Where fearing dying pays death servile breath. --Shak. [1913 Webster]

Word Net

where adv : in or at or to what place; "I know where he is"; "use it wherever necessary" [syn: wherever]

English

Etymology

hwær.

Pronunciation

Homophones

Conjunction

  1. While on the contrary; although; whereas.
    Where Susy has trouble coloring inside the lines, Johnny has already mastered shading.

Translations

the place in/at which; the place from which
the place to which
the situation in which
  • Czech: kde
  • German: wo
  • Portuguese: em que
  • Scots: whaur
  • Spanish: donde
  • Swedish: var

Adverb

  1. (used interrogatively, in either a direct or indirect question) At what place; to what place; what place.
    Where are you?
    Where are you going?
    Where did you come from?
  2. In what situation.
    Where would we be without our parents?

Translations

at what place; to what place; from what place
in what situation

Pronoun

  1. The place in which.
    He lives within five miles of where he was born.

Translations

the place in which

Noun

  1. The place in which something happens.
    A good article will cover the who, the what, the when, the where, the why and the how.

Translations

the place in which something happens

Derived terms

Where may refer to:
  • Where (SQL) - Database language clause
  • Where - basic interrogative about location
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