whole

1 of 3

adjective

1
a(1)
: free of wound or injury : unhurt
(2)
: recovered from a wound or injury : restored
(3)
: being healed
whole of an ancient evil, I sleep soundA. E. Housman
b
: free of defect or impairment : intact
c
: physically sound and healthy : free of disease or deformity
d
: mentally or emotionally sound
2
: having all its proper parts or components : complete, unmodified
whole milk
a whole egg
3
a
: constituting the total sum or undiminished entirety : entire
owns the whole island
b
: each or all of the
took part in the whole series of athletic events
4
a
: constituting an undivided unit : unbroken, uncut
a whole roast suckling pig
b
: directed to one end : concentrated
your whole attention
5
a
: seemingly complete or total
the whole idea is to help, not hinder
b
: very great in quantity, extent, or scope
feels a whole lot better now
6
: constituting the entirety of a person's nature or development
educate the whole student
7
: having the same father and mother
whole brother
wholeness noun

whole

2 of 3

noun

1
: a complete amount or sum : a number, aggregate, or totality lacking no part, member, or element
2
: something constituting a complex unity : a coherent system or organization of parts fitting or working together as one

whole

3 of 3

adverb

1
: wholly, entirely
a whole new age groupHenry Chauncey
2
: as a complete entity
Phrases
in whole
: to the full or entire extent : wholly
usually used in the phrase in whole or in part
on the whole
1
: in view of all the circumstances or conditions : all things considered
2
: in general : in most instances : typically
Choose the Right Synonym for whole

perfect, whole, entire, intact mean not lacking or faulty in any particular.

perfect implies the soundness and the excellence of every part, element, or quality of a thing frequently as an unattainable or theoretical state.

a perfect set of teeth

whole suggests a completeness or perfection that can be sought, gained, or regained.

felt like a whole person again after vacation

entire implies perfection deriving from integrity, soundness, or completeness of a thing.

the entire Beethoven corpus

intact implies retention of perfection of a thing in its natural or original state.

the boat survived the storm intact

Examples of whole in a Sentence

Adjective The doctor assured me that the whole procedure would only take a few minutes. The whole place was remodeled. It looks great now. It's been a whole week since I've seen him. I spent the whole summer traveling through Europe. The whole evening was a great success. She read the whole book in one day. I've been waiting my whole life for this. We decided to forget the whole thing. We cooked a whole chicken. The community center offers a whole range of programs. Noun the landlord eventually refunded the whole of our deposit Adverb We cooked the chicken whole. The frog swallowed the fly whole.
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Or consume more fiber, such as high-fiber fruits and whole grains, and eat less processed and sugary foods, including baked goods and sweets. Dominique Fluker, Essence, 26 Sep. 2024 Staples like fruits; veggies; whole grains; and legumes like beans, peas, and lentils are all solid sources of the stuff. Caroline Tien, SELF, 26 Sep. 2024
Noun
Meanwhile, Telefónica is battling with headwinds faced by the whole of Europe’s telecom sector. John Hopewell, Variety, 27 Sep. 2024 That is what baseball fans in Cleveland have done in this impossibly improbable season in which the whole of their team somehow greatly exceeded the sum of its parts. Jim Ingraham, Forbes, 26 Sep. 2024
Adverb
The cube pops up whole again in Endgame, this time in the past, circa 2012, when the Avengers are pulling their multi-pronged time heist to get all the stones before Thanos can. Glenn Greenberg, EW.com, 27 Oct. 2023 In the Heat’s first game while whole after dealing with injury issues for the first three months of the season, Spoelstra went with a nine-man rotation that did not include Josh Richardson in Saturday’s road loss to the New York Knicks. Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2024 See all Example Sentences for whole 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'whole.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English hool healthy, unhurt, entire, from Old English hāl; akin to Old High German heil healthy, unhurt, Old Norse heill, Old Church Slavic cělŭ

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adverb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of whole was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near whole

Cite this Entry

“Whole.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/whole. Accessed 7 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

whole

1 of 2 adjective
1
: being in healthy or sound condition : free from sickness or injury : well
your care made me whole again
2
a
: having all its proper parts or elements : complete
whole grain
whole milk
b
: not cut up or in pieces
a whole roast chicken
3
: not divided or scattered
your whole attention
4
: being the total or full amount or extent of something
owns the whole island
5
: each or all of the
the whole 10 days

whole

2 of 2 noun
1
: a complete amount or sum
2
: something whole or entire
the whole of an apple
Etymology

Adjective

Old English hāl "healthy" — related to hale entry 1

Medical Definition

whole

adjective
: containing all its natural constituents, components, or elements : deprived of nothing by refining, processing, or separation
whole milk

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