whichever
/wɪt͡ʃˈɛvɚ/determiner, pronoun
whichever is spelled W-H-I-C-H-E-V-E-R: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 5.0 times per million words in written English, the 11,198th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a determiner, whichever means “Which ever; emphatic form of 'which'” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in whichever?
| Letters | 9: W-H-I-C-H-E-V-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 5.0 times per million words; the 11,198th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is whichever?
Whichever appears 5.0 times per million words in written English, the 11,198th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce whichever?
- US /wɪt͡ʃˈɛvɚ/
- US /ʍɪt͡ʃˈɛvɚ/
Whichever has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-whichever.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with whichever?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as whichever from its last stressed vowel (/ɛvəɹ/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
What does whichever mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
determiner
- 1
Which ever; emphatic form of 'which'.
Good heavens! Whichever button did you press to make that happen?!
- 2
Regardless of the ... that; no matter which.
It won't work, whichever buttons you press.
- 3
Any or either ... that; the ... that.
Choose whichever card you like.
- 4
According to or depending upon which.
I'll buy the red shirt or the blue shirt, whichever one is cheaper.
pronoun
- 1
Which ever; emphatic form of 'which'.
These chocolates all look delicious. Whichever shall I choose?
- 2
Irrespective of the one(s) that; no matter which one(s).
Whichever you pick, be content with it.
- 3
Any or either one(s) that; the one(s) that.
I have a few books; please borrow whichever interest you.
- 4
informalAny or either one(s).
I don't mind which you have. Take whichever.
- 5
According to or depending upon which one(s).
I'll buy the red shirt or the blue shirt, whichever is cheaper.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Whichever in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense Translations:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Spanish | cualquiera, cual sea, quequier |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does whichever come from?
From whiche ever, whiche evere, which ever, which evere; equivalent to which + -ever.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).