what

play

pronoun \ˈhwät, ˈhwət, ˈwät, ˈwət\

Definition of what

1a (1) —used as an interrogative expressing inquiry about the identity, nature, or value of an object or matter what is this what is wealth without friends what does he earn what hath God wrought (2) —often used to ask for repetition of an utterance or part of an utterance not properly heard or understood you said whatb (1) archaic : who 1 —used as an interrogative expressing inquiry about the identity of a person (2) —used as an interrogative expressing inquiry about the character, nature, occupation, position, or role of a person what do you think I am, a fool what is she, that all our swains commend her — William Shakespearec —used as an exclamation expressing surprise or excitement and frequently introducing a question what, no breakfastd —used in expressions directing attention to a statement that the speaker is about to make you know whate (1) —used at the end of a question to express inquiry about additional possibilities is it raining, or snowing, or what (2) —used with or at the end of a question usually in expectation of agreement is this exciting, or whatf chiefly British —used at the end of an utterance as a form of tag question a clever play, what
2 chiefly dialectal : ⁴that 1, which 3, who 3
3a : that which : the one or ones that no income but what he gets from his writings —sometimes used in reference to a clause or phrase that is yet to come or is not yet complete gave also, what is more valuable, understandingb : the thing or things that what you need is a vacation what angered us was the tone of the article
4a : whatever 1a say what you willb obsolete : whoever

what for

1 : for what purpose or reason : why —usually used with the other words of a question between what and for what did you do that for except when used alone
2 : harsh treatment especially by blows or by a sharp reprimand gave him what for in violent Spanish — New Yorker

what have you

: whatnot novels, plays, short stories, travelogues, and what have you — Haldeen Braddy

what if

1 : what will or would be the result if
2 : what does it matter if so what if he doesn't like it

what of

1 : what is the situation with respect to
2 : what importance can be assigned to

what's more

: in addition : furthermore

what's what

: the true state of things knows what's what when it comes to fashion

what though

: what does it matter if what though the rose have prickles, yet 'tis plucked — William Shakespeare

See what defined for English-language learners

See what defined for kids

Origin and Etymology of what

Middle English, from Old English hwæt, neuter of hwā who — more at who

NEW!

First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

what

adverb

Definition of what

1 obsolete : why
2 : in what respect : how what does he care
3 —used to introduce prepositional phrases in parallel construction or a prepositional phrase that expresses cause and usually has more than one object ; used principally before phrases beginning with with what with unemployment increasing what with the war, what with the sweat, what with the gallows, and what with poverty, I am custom-shrunk — William Shakespeare

See what defined for English-language learners

First Known Use of what

before 12th century

what

adjective

Definition of what

1a —used as an interrogative expressing inquiry about the identity, nature, or value of a person, object, or matter what minerals do we exportb : how remarkable or striking for good or bad qualities —used especially in exclamatory utterances and dependent clauses what mountains remember what fun we had what a suggestion what a charming girl
2a (1) : whatever 1a (2) : any ornament of what description soeverb : the … that : as much or as many … as rescued what survivors they found

See what defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of what from the Web

Francona has been undergoing tests to determine what has been causing lightheadedness and increasing his heart rate.

— New York Times, "Lionel Messi and Barcelona Agree on Extension", 5 July 2017
How could an amateur like me ever learn what combinations of shutter speed, aperture and sensitivity to light (ISO) to dial up for a certain picture?

— david pogue, Scientific American, "Should Artists Reveal How Much They Let Technology Make Creative Choices?", 3 July 2017
Now, two decades later, Jennifer Aniston, legions of Goop-ers, and wellness experts are singing the praises of collagen, that same gulasz goo, and for what benefit?

— magdalena puniewska, Bon Appetit, "6 Ways to Boost Your Collagen Besides Bone Broth", 28 June 2017
What better way for Freeform’s most popular show to sign off than with one final twist?

— laura bradley, VanityFair.com, "How That Bonkers Pretty Little Liars Ending Came Together", 28 June 2017
A 29-year-old man is accused of stabbing a Naperville man 10 times with a knife and puncturing one of his lungs in what a Lisle police official are calling a case of road rage.

— bill bird, Naperville Sun, "Naperville man stabbed in 'road rage' fight, police say", 22 June 2017
The conditions that created the bonebed, and what led to Allosaurus being buried in unprecedented numbers, are still unknown, not to mention all the other paleobiological and ecological details still embedded in bone and rock.

— brian switek, Scientific American Blog Network, "The Making of an Allosaurus Graveyard", 21 June 2017
This data will enable scientists to determine what kind of planets make up our galaxy and monitor possible Earth-like planets.

— yifan wang, Time, "NASA Discovers 10 Potential Planets That May Be Habitable", 19 June 2017
The question is: Under what conditions did human males give up these weapons?

— michael forsberg, National Geographic, "Why It Matters Who Females Choose to Have Sex With", 18 June 2017

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

First Known Use of what

13th century

WHAT Defined for English Language Learners

what

play

pronoun

Definition of what for English Language Learners

—used to ask for information about someone or something
—used to describe a question
—used to express surprise, excitement, etc.

what

adverb

Definition of what for English Language Learners

: in what way

what

adjective

Definition of what for English Language Learners

—used to ask someone to indicate the identity or nature of someone or something
—used to say that someone or something is remarkable for having good or bad qualities
—used to refer to an amount that someone has, uses, etc.

WHAT Defined for Kids

what

play

pronoun \ˈhwät, ˈhwət, ˈwät, ˈwət\

Definition of what for Students

1 : which thing or things What happened?
2 : which sort of thing or person What is this? What are they, doctors? … “what could be more important than doing unimportant things?” — Norton Juster, The Phantom Tollbooth
3 : that which Do what you're told. From what he said, I guessed he was new.
4 —used to ask someone to repeat something You did what?
5 : ¹whatever 1 Take what you need.

what for

: ¹why He seemed in a very bad temper … though I could not tell what for. — Anna Sewell, Black Beauty

what if

1 : what would happen if What if they find out?
2 : what does it matter if So what if they do? I don't care.

what

play

adverb

Definition of what for Students

1 : in what way : how What does it matter?
2 —used before one or more phrases that tell a cause What with the school and sports, she's busy.

what

play

adjective

Definition of what for Students

1 —used to ask about the identity of a person, object, or matter What books do you read?
2 : how remarkable or surprising What an idea!
3 : ²whatever 1 I don't know what else to say.