Definitions for which
ʰwɪtʃ, wɪtʃwhich

Wiktionary(2.60 / 12 votes)Rate this definition:

1. whichnoun

   An occurrence of the word which.

2. whichpronoun

   Who; whom; what (of those mentioned or implied)

3. Etymology: hwilc, from Proto-Germanic, the former being the stem of. Cognates include German welcher, Dutch welk and Old Norse hvílíkr.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. WHICHpron.

   Etymology: hwilc , Saxon; welk, Dutch.

   1. The pronoun relative; relating to things.

   The apostles term it the pledge of our heavenly inheritance, sometimes the handsel or earnest of that which is to come. Richard Hooker, b. v.

   Do they not blaspheme that worthy name, by the which ye are called? Ja. ii. 7.

   In destructions by deluge, the remnant which hap to be reserved are ignorant. Francis Bacon.

   To which their want of judging abilities, add also their want of opportunity to apply to such a serious consideration as may let them into the true goodness and evil of things, which are qualities which seldom display themselves to the first view. Robert South, Sermons.

   The queen of furies by their side is set,
   And snatches from their mouths th’ untasted meat,
   Which, if they touch, her hissing snakes she rears. Dryden.

   After the several earths, consider the parts of the surface of this globe which is barren, as sand and rocks. John Locke.

   2. It formerly was used for who, and related likewise to persons: as in the first words of the Lord’s prayer.

   The Almighty, which giveth wisdom to whomsoever it pleaseth him, did, for the good of his church, stay those eager affections. Richard Hooker.

   Do you hear, sir, of a battle?
   ———— Every one hears that,
   Which can distinguish sound. William Shakespeare, King Lear.

   Had I been there, which am a silly woman,
   The soldiers should have toss’d me on their pikes,
   Before I would have granted to that act. William Shakespeare, H. VI.

   3. The genitive of which, as well as of who, is whose; but whose, as derived from which, is scarcely used but in poetry.

   Of man’s first disobedience, and the fruit
   Of that forbidden tree, whose mortal taste. John Milton.

   4. It is sometimes a demonstrative: as, take which you will.

   What is the night?
   —— Almost at odds with morning, which is which. William Shakespeare.

   5. It is sometimes an interrogative: as, which is the man.

   Two fair twins,
   The puzzled strangers which is which enquire. Thomas Tickell.

Webster Dictionary(2.40 / 5 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Whichadjective

   of what sort or kind; what; what a; who

2. Whichadjective

   a interrogative pronoun, used both substantively and adjectively, and in direct and indirect questions, to ask for, or refer to, an individual person or thing among several of a class; as, which man is it? which woman was it? which is the house? he asked which route he should take; which is best, to live or to die? See the Note under What, pron., 1

3. Which

   a relative pronoun, used esp. in referring to an antecedent noun or clause, but sometimes with reference to what is specified or implied in a sentence, or to a following noun or clause (generally involving a reference, however, to something which has preceded). It is used in all numbers and genders, and was formerly used of persons

4. Which

   a compound relative or indefinite pronoun, standing for any one which, whichever, that which, those which, the . . . which, and the like; as, take which you will

5. Etymology: [OE. which, whilk, AS. hwilc, hwylc, hwelc, from the root of hw who + lc body; hence properly, of what sort or kind; akin to OS. hwilik which, OFries. hwelik, D. welk, G. welch, OHG. welh, hwelh, Icel. hvlkr, Dan. & Sw. hvilken, Goth. hwileiks, hwleiks; cf. L. qualis. . See Who, and Like, a., and cf. Such.]

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(3.50 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Which

   hwich, interrog. pron. what one of a number?—also used adjectively.—rel. pron. (obs.) who, whom: now used of things only.—prons. Whichev′er, Whichsoev′er, every one which: whether one or other.—(obs.) Which...he, who; Which...his, whose—surviving in the vulgar use of which as a mere introductory word; Which is which? which is the one, which is the other? a common phrase denoting inability to decide between two or more things.—The which (obs.), which. [A.S. hwilc, hwelc, from hwí, instrumental case of hwá, who, and líc, like; Goth. hwei-leiks, Ger. welch, welcher; L. qualis. Cf. Such and Each.]

Editors Contribution(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. which

   A relative pronoun.

   The company which released the new software were happy to open-source the code for it to be improved.

   
   

   Submitted by MaryC on April 8, 2020  

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'which' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #30

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'which' in Written Corpus Frequency: #80

How to pronounce which?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say which in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of which in Chaldean Numerology is: 2

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of which in Pythagorean Numerology is: 6

Examples of which in a Sentence

1. Elsi Wu:

   The glasses in the kitchen started clattering, which woke me up, it was terrifying.

2. Maria Veres:

   I have seen a baby who was five to six days old, who was born with Caesarean in Greece, a very beautiful and healthy baby, i checked the baby and then it turned out that her mother had a problem with her stitchings, which is understandable after so much walking.

3. Socrates:

   People demand freedom of speech to make up for the freedom of thought which they avoid.

4. Kristen Burns:

   There are certain foods that are triggers for people with incontinence or overactive bladders, including spicy foods, which doctors have identified as common irritants for women.

5. Rick Shaw:

   Photojournalism is a balance between photography as an art form and journalism, which is content-related, any photograph that reaches the highest level for both is an exceptional picture.

Popularity rank by frequency of use