how

adverb

\ ˈhau̇

Definition of how

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : in what manner or way How did you two meet each other? How did he die? How do you know that?

b : for what reason : why How would I know if it's going to rain or not?

c : with what meaning : to what effect How are we to interpret such behavior?

d : by what name or title How art thou called?— William Shakespeare

2 : to what degree or extent How much longer do we have to wait? I don't know how old she is.

3 : in what state or condition How are you? How do you feel?

4 : at what price how a score of ewes now— Shakespeare

how about

: what do you say to or think of how about it, are you going?

how come

: how does it happen that : why How come you can't go?

how

conjunction

Definition of how (Entry 2 of 3)

1a : the way or manner in which asked how they could help the story of how the company was founded remember how they fought also : the state or condition in which reported how the patient was found by the paramedics

b : that told them how he had a situation— Charles Dickens

2 : however, as a reader can shift his attention how he likes— William Empson

how

noun

Definition of how (Entry 3 of 3)

1 : a question about manner or method the eternal whys and hows of small children— Jeanne Massey

2 : manner, method examining the hows and whys of exercise

Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about how

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Examples of how in a Sentence

Adverb

How and where did you meet him? How shall I address the President? How will we pay for the trip? “How did you get here?” “By bus.” “How did she die?” “She had cancer.” How do you know that? How did you find us? How could you have known? How did you happen to move here?

Conjunction

We asked how we could help. Let me tell you how we'll pay for the trip. The book tells the story of how the company was founded. She explained how she came to live here. I don't know how the service is at the new restaurant. I remember how they fought. Be careful how you talk; you could get fired. She told us how she had to work hard. He knows how you are a valued employee. It's amazing how they completed the bridge so quickly.

Noun

the environmental activist eagerly launched into an explanation of the hows and whys of developing renewable energy sources

Recent Examples on the Web: Adverb

Among other things, that information allowed scientists to finally pin down exactly how massive Saturn’s rings really are. — Avery Thompson, Popular Mechanics, "Saturn's Rings Are Much Younger Than You Might Think," 18 Jan. 2019 All sound projects from the bottom of the handle, which makes sense in terms of how hands are likely to cover the rest of the handle. — Sam Machkovech, Ars Technica, "Hands-on with a $434 replica lightsaber: May the dork be with you," 25 Dec. 2018 The Fed is widely expected Wednesday to raise interest rates for a fourth time this year and likely indicate how much and how often officials expect to increase rates in coming years. — Jessica Menton, WSJ, "U.S. Stocks Need a Santa Claus Rally to Avoid a Losing Year," 17 Dec. 2018 Several operatives working for the group were listed in a February 2018 indictment from special counsel Robert Muller detailing how Russian nationals interfered in the 2016 election. — P.r. Lockhart, Vox, "How Russia exploited racial tensions in America during the 2016 elections," 17 Dec. 2018 The decision resurrected questions about how the military treats detainees and how soldiers should conduct themselves in places where lethal danger is ever present. — Taimoor Shah, The Seattle Times, "Trump to ‘review’ case of Green Beret accused of murdering Afghan," 16 Dec. 2018 Yet how fabulously civilised was the public response in the streets today. — David Abrahams, Vogue, "A Very British Protest Unites London," 14 July 2018 There was no explanation of how the driving was suspicious. — Pauline Repard, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Border Patrol seizes 45 pounds of meth in pickup along I-15 in Fallbrook," 14 July 2018 So, how was that, to see that story all the way through? — Abby Gardner, Glamour, "How a Former Glamour College Woman of the Year Helped Break the Alice Johnson Story," 13 July 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

But as criminals increasingly transact across borders, the financial cops have shared know-how with their overseas peers, including authorities in the U.K., Hong Kong and Australia. — Andrea Tan, Bloomberg.com, "Singapore Pledges Crackdown on White-Collar Crime," 18 Jan. 2018 To add some predictability to an energy source of the future, Alphabet (the parent company of Google) is digging into its machine learning know-how. — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Google And DeepMind Algorithms Could Make Wind Power More Efficient," 27 Feb. 2019 Democrats hoping to defeat President Donald Trump are engaged in a furious courtship of congressional newcomers, a sign of the energy the freshmen bring to a party looking for a new generation of leaders, direction and know-how. — Laurie Kellman, The Seattle Times, "Belles of the ball: Dem freshmen courted by 2020 hopefuls," 19 Feb. 2019 China is drawing on a deep reserve of technical know-how to develop such weapons. — David Hambling, Popular Mechanics, "What You Need to Know About the South China Sea, the World's Next Hot Spot," 27 Feb. 2019 The company faces a tough challenge breaking into an auto industry dominated by players with deep pockets and years of car-making know-how. — Daphne Zhang, WSJ, "Dyson Plans to Build Electric Cars in Singapore," 23 Oct. 2018 The transfer of know-how from rich countries to poorer ones, by hook or crook, is an integral part of economic development. — The Economist, "America Inc and the rage against Beijing," 28 June 2018 Can-do entrepreneurship alone won’t modernize the region’s transportation infrastructure, nor will a concentration of academic know-how make housing more affordable. — Bill Sibold, STAT, "Boston: the best city in the world to fail in biotech," 3 June 2018 In keeping with its original raison d'être as a symbol of engineering know-how, the tower was upgraded as part of a four-year, $37 million renovation, completed in 2015. — National Geographic, "From Historic to Cutting Edge: Revitalizing Iconic Buildings," 25 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'how.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.