| 释义 |
▪ I. where, adv. and conj.|hwɛə(r)|
Forms.: α. 1–2 hwær, (1 huoer, hwoer, wær, uer), 1–3 hwer, 1–4 huer, (3 whær(e, wær), 3–5 wer, 3–6 wher, 4 hwere, 4–6 were, 6 whear, Sc. vher, 6–7 wheare, 7 (9 dial.) wheer, 4– where; Sc. and north. dial. 3–5 quer, 4–5 quere, 5 qwer(e, qwher, 6 quheir, 7 quher(e. β. 1–3 hwar, (1 hwara), 2–4 war, (3 wahr, ȝwar, ȝware), 3–5 ware, (8 Sc.) whare, (8–9 Sc.) whar, 4 hware, 5 whaire, 6–7 vhair, (9 Sc.) whair, 9 Sc. whaur; Sc. and north. dial. 3–4 quar, 4–5 quare, 4–6 quhar, quhare, 5 qwar, qware, qwhar, qwhare; 5–6 quair, 5–8 quhair, 6–7 quhaire. γ. 3 wor, quor, quuor, 4 hwore, quore, 4–5 whore, 5 whor. δ. n. e. Sc. 6 for, 9 faur (Irish far).
[OE. hwǽr, hwár, corresp. to OFris. hwêr, OS. hwâr (MLG. wâr, LG. waar, woor, MDu., Du. waar), OHG. (h)wâr, wâ, MHG. wâ, G. wo (wâr surviving in G. warum). A disyllabic OE. form hwára (ME. whǭre) also existed; cf. þára there. Forms with short vowel appear in OE. hwar, hwara, (ME. whar, whare), OS. hwar, OHG. wara, MHG. ware, war whither, ON. hvar (Sw. var, Da. hvor), Goth. hwar where.
Derived from the interrog. stem χwa-, as here is from χi- he, and there from þa-; cf. Lith. kur̃ where, L. cūr (:—*quōr) why, Skr. kár-hi when.]
I. Interrogative uses.
In dependent clauses formerly sometimes followed by that: see that conj. 6. For the distinction between the dependent interrogative and the relative use, cf. what A. I.**
1. In or at what place (region, country, etc.)?
a. in direct questions.
c825Vesp. Psalter xli. 4 [xlii. 3] Hwer is god ðin? c1000ælfric Gen. iii. 9 God..cwæð: Adam, hwar eart þu? a1175Cott. Hom. 241 Þis is hare bread, hwer scule we win finden? c1200Ormin 12734 Lef maȝȝstre, whære biggesst tu? c1205Lay. 4454 Whær beo ȝe mine cnihtes, whar beo ȝe mine kempen? c1250Gen. & Ex. 356 Ðu, nu, quor art, adam, adam? Ibid. 1311 Quar sal ben taken Ðe offrende ðat ðu wilt maken? a1300Cursor M. 1123 Caym ware es þi broiþer abell? 1382Wyclif Gen. iii. 9 The Lord God clepide Adam, and seide to hym, Where art thow? a1400–50Wars Alex. 683 Quat sterne is it at ȝe stody on, quare stekis it in heuyn? 1456Sir G. Haye Law Arms (S.T.S.) 6 The secounde questioun that is to say quhare was bataill first fundyn. c1460Towneley Myst. xiii. 402 Primus pastor. Bot I will go before, let vs mete. ijus pastor. whore? iijus pastor. At the crokyd thorne. a1600Montgomerie Sonn. lvi. 13 Vhair go they then? 1637Milton Lycidas 50 Where were ye Nymphs when the remorseless deep Clos'd o're the head of your lov'd Lycidas? 1779Warner in Jesse Selwyn & Contemp. (1844) IV. 285, I have been preaching this morning, and am going to dine,—where?—in the afternoon. 1838P. Egan Pilgr. Thames 259 Where the deuce am I? 1848Dickens Dombey xxvi, My dearest Edith,..where on earth have you been? 1896Barrie Sentim. Tommy iii. 34 Whaur heard you that name?
b. (a) in dependent clauses.
c893ælfred Oros. iv. x. §3 Ᵹesecgað me nu Romane, cwæð Orosius, hwonne þæt ᵹewurde oþþe hwara [etc.]. 971Blickl. Hom. 241 Þine stefne ic ᵹehiere, ac ic ne wat hwær þu eart. c1200Trin. Coll. Hom. 143 Ȝe hereð, ware heo com to ure helende. a1240Ureisun 106 in O.E. Hom. I. 197 Ful wel þu me iseie..Hwar ich was and hwat i dude. c1290S. Eng. Leg. 10/325 He wuste ȝware þe rode lai. a1300Cursor M. 157 Hit sal be reddynn þanne..How he was born and quen and ware [v.rr. quare, whare]. Ibid. 17288 + 223 Þai haf taken my lord,..and doyne him Ine wote whore. 13..E.E. Allit. P. A. 65, I ne wyste in þis worlde quere þat hit wace. 1461Paston Lett. II. 17, I have knowelege quere the shippyng chall be. 1470–85Malory Arthur x. lvii. 511 Yet wold not sire Launcelot telle me certeynte of you where I shold fynde yow. 1573–80Tusser Husb. (1878) 117 Where hops will growe, here learne to knowe. 1645in Spalding Club Misc. I. 56 Ye will certanly knaw whair to find ws with the Regiementis. 1648Cromwell Let. to T. Saunders 17 June in Carlyle, You may send to Colonel Herbert,..who will certainly acquaint you where he is. 1724Ramsay Vision vii, I..Speird, quhair he had been sae lang? 1784Cowper Ep. to J. Hill 47 An emp'ror, a wise man—No matter where, in China or Japan. 1822Scott Nigel iii, You did not tell him where I lived, you knave? 1860Dickens Uncomm. Trav. ii, Little does it signify to us, when the soul has departed, where this poor body lies. 1882Besant All Sorts xv, You come from no one knows where; you live no one knows how.
(b) in dependence on an int. or vb. of looking: lo where, see where, look where, behold where (he comes) = Here or there (he comes)! arch.
c1205Lay. 5029 Leo wær here þa wombe þe þu læie inne swa longe. c1420Chron. Vilod. 3117 Lowe where is a lomb! a fayre whyte lomb! lo! lo! 1591Shakes. Two Gent. v. i. 7 See where she comes. 1593― 3 Hen. VI, i. i. 50 My Lords, looke where the sturdie Rebell sits. 1605― Macb. v. viii. 55 Behold where stands Th' Vsurpers cursed head. 1681Dryden Abs. & Achit. ii. 1125 See where the Princely Barque in loosest Pride, With all her Guardian Fleet, Adorns the Tide! 1742Gray Spring i, Lo! where the rosy-bosom'd Hours, Fair Venus' train, appear. 1839Hood Quakers' Conversaz. ii. 29 Lo! where the Soldier walks, alas! With Scars received on foreign Grounds.
c. colloq. with from or to at the end of the sentence or clause: where{ddd}from? = whence? where{ddd}to? = whither?
1760–72H. Brooke Fool of Qual. (1809) II. 103, I must go suddenly, but where to? 1835Dickens Sk. Boz, Parish iii, Where on earth the husband came from. 1914‘Ian Hay’ Knt. on Wheels xiii, Where do these brats hail from?
2. In general and fig. senses: In what position, situation, or circumstances? at what point or stage (of action, speech, or thought)? in what passage or part (of a writing)? in what particular? in what respect? in what? also (contextually, with get, etc.) from what source?
a1225Ancr. R. 8 Askeð him, Hwat beo ordre, & hwar he ifinde in holi write religiun openluker descriued..þen in sein Iames canoniel epistle? a1250Owl & Night. 892 & þan sunfulle ic helpe al so Vor ic him teche hwar is wo. a1300Cursor M. 2800 Godd..Þat made þat sinful folk sa madd, Þat þai ne wist war þai war stad. c1450Mirk's Festial 4 Hys angyll..tellyng hym redely wher and how oft he haþe don amys. 1531Elyot Gov. i. xiii. (1883) I. 131 In defendynge of oratours and poetes I had all moste forgoten where I was. 1599Shakes. Hen. V, iii. v. 15 Where haue they this mettell? Is not their Clymate foggy, raw, and dull? 1600― A.Y.L. v. ii. 32 O, I know where you are. 1641Milton Ch. Govt. i. vii. 28 If there were no opposition where were the triall of an unfained goodnesse and magnanimity? 1728Law Serious C. ix, You must not deceive yourself with saying, Where can be the harm of clothes? 1847C. Brontë J. Eyre xxxii, ‘But where is the use of going on,’ I asked. 1882Besant All Sorts xxii, ‘I see..You were attracted by the ancient inscriptions?’ ‘Naturally: without inscriptions, where are you?’ 1908R. Bagot A. Cuthbert v. 47 That is all very well; but where do I come in?
3. To what place? Now, in ordinary use, taking the place of whither; cf. here adv. 7, there 8. (Formerly freq. with become, q.v. 1 b.)
c1000Wanderer 92 Hwær cwom mearᵹ? hwær cwom maᵹo? c1205Lay. 21913 Wær scullen we bicumen? a1300Cursor M. 13748 Quar ar þai cummen, þin wiþerwins þat þe had nummen? 1303R. Brunne Handl. Synne 7492 Þat þrostel sagh he no more; Hyt become, he ne wyst whore. 1377Langl. P. Pl. B. Prol. 166 Were þere a belle on here beiȝ... Men myȝte wite where þei went and awei renne! 1470–85Malory Arthur xxi. iv. 846 Where are al my noble knyghtes becomen? 1587Harrison England i. xi. 47/1 in Holinshed, Whose eies are so blinded with the thicknesse of that element, that they cannot see where to become. 1590Shakes. Mids. N. iii. i. 166 Where shall we go? 1611― Wint. T. iv. iv. 304 Aut. Get you hence, for I must goe Where it fits not you to know. Dor. Whether? a1708T. Ward Eng. Ref. i. (1710) 86 His Soul departed, God knows where. 1730A. Gordon Maffei's Amphith. 289 We shall now mention where every one of those Entries..lead. 1809Malkin Gil Blas iii. iii. ⁋8 Unconscionable dogs! Where do they expect to go when they die? 1860Dickens Uncomm. Trav. iii, Who departed this life I don't know when, and whose coaches are all gone I don't know where.
4. In rhetorical questions having the effect of emphatic negations (cf. what A. 3): e.g. where is ―? implying or suggesting ‘― has vanished’ or ‘there is no ― anywhere’; where not = everywhere (cf. what not).
c888ælfred Boeth. xix, Hwær synt nu þæs Welondes ban, oððe hwa wat nu hwær hi wæron? c1000Ags. Gosp. Luke viii. 25 Ða cwæþ se hælend, hwar is eower ᵹeleafa? c1300Havelok 1083 Hwere mithe i finden ani so hey So hauelok is, or so sley? c1430Hymns Virgin (1867) 86 Where is bicome cesar, þat lorde was of al? c1520Skelton Magnyf. 2055 Where is nowe my Welth and my noble estate? 1567Satir. Poems Reform. iv. 174 Quhair sall men find steidfast Stabilnes? 1600W. Watson Decacordon (1602) 34 All went to wracke in England, Scotland, Flanders, Germanie, Polony, and where not. 1709Prior Henry & Emma 282 And where is Emma's Joy, if Henry flies? 1842Mrs. Trollope Vis. Italy I. iii. 49 As to pictures, where could I find foolscap enough to catalogue the multitude I have seen? 1865Dickens Mut. Fr. i. v, Where would be the good of Mrs. Boffin and me quarrelling over it? 1906Bigg Wayside Sk. vi. 154 Where shall we find him [sc. the perfect reformer] except in the Son of Man?
II. Relative and conjunctive uses.
Formerly often followed by that (that conj. 6).
* In senses referring to physical position.
5. as compound relative, or as correlative to there (implied and sometimes expressed; cf. what C.*, when 4): In or at the (or a) place in or at which; at the part at which.
[c950Lindisf. Gosp. Matt. vi. 21 Ubi enim est thesaurus tuus ibi est et cor tuum, ðer vel huer forðon is strion ðin, ðer is & hearta ðin.] 13..Northern Passion I. 138 Þei souhte anoþer where þei myhte. 1338R. Brunne Chron. (1725) I. 22 Þer where he was schotte. c1400tr. Secr. Secr., Gov. Lordsh. 89 A hors shal neuer henny whore he dwellys. 1483Acta Audit. in Acta Dom. Conc. II. Introd. 102 The Lordis..ordanis that letters be writin to the schireffis quhar the said landis liis. 1548–9[see thither 1 c]. 1583B. Melbancke Philotimus E j, Wher God buildes a church, the deuill builds a chappell. a1592Greene Orpharion Wks. (Grosart) XII. 33 Where the sea is most deepe, there it is most calme. 1639J. Clarke Parœm. 48 He is where he would be. 1779Cowper A Tale, ‘Where Humber’, Where Humber pours his rich commercial stream, There dwelt a wretch, who breath'd but to blaspheme. 1810Crabbe Borough ii. 45 Where the common eye Can but the bare and rocky bed descry, There Science loves to trace her tribes minute. 1859Ruskin Two Paths i. §2 Inverness, placed where it might ennoble one of the sweetest landscapes. 1893M. Pemberton Iron Pirate iv, I shall stay where I am.
b. To the (or a) place in or at which (= thither where).
[c950Lindisf. Gosp. John xi. 32 Cum uenisset ubi erat iesus, Miððy cuome ðer vel huoer uæs se hælend.] c1375Sc. Leg. Saints i. (Petrus) 100 To þe prince sa spak he þane, Þat quhare petire wes, he wane. a1500Hist. K. Boccus & Sydracke (? 1510) N j, They fare as a lefe on the tre That turnes whare the wynd wylbe. c1586C'tess Pembroke Ps. lxxxiv. iii, Me seemes I see them going Where mulberies are growing. 1671Milton P.R. iii. 244, I will bring thee where thou soon shalt quit Those rudiments. 1697Dryden æneis xi. 44 He took his Way, Where, new in Death, lamented Pallas lay. Mod. I'll take you where we shall get a better view.
6. Introducing a clause as obj. of a verb or prep., or as predicate: = a or the place in (or to) which.
Originating in, and not always distinguishable from, the use in indirect questions (1 b).
[c950Lindisf. Gosp. Matt. viii. 20 Filius..hominis non habet ubi caput reclinet, Sunu..monnes ne hæfis huer [Rushw. wær] heafud ᵹehlutes; [1382 Wyclif but mannes sone hath nat wher he reste his heued.] ]c1200Ormin 12985 Þeȝȝ tokenn þær to fraȝȝnenn Crist Off whære he wass att hame. 1579W. Wilkinson Confut. Fam. Love Brief Descr., Not hauyng where they durst at any tyme rest. 1590Spenser F.Q. iii. iii. 27 From where the day out of the sea doth spring, Vntill the closure of the Euening. 1613Purchas Pilgrimage ii. xvii. 170 The Iewes will not quite empty any place of water, that on the Sabbath these fierie soules may finde where to coole them. 1766Goldsm. Vic. W. v, Within about twenty paces of where we were sitting. 1766― Hermit 3 And guide my lonely way To where yon taper cheers the vale With hospitable ray. 1876Tennyson Harold v. i, I can see it From where we stand. 1882Besant All Sorts iv. (1898) 42 He..showed her where the liquor stood to ferment.
7. as simple relative.
a. With antecedent place, or some n. denoting a place or receptacle; introducing a defining or restrictive clause completing the sense: In or at which.
c1250Kent. Serm. in O.E. Misc. 27 Al-wat hi kam over þo huse war ure louerd was. 1390Gower Conf. III. 324 He bad his man to gon and spire A place wher sche myhte abyde. c1400Rule St. Benet (verse) 1666 And honest place for to be in, Whor þai may sit with-outyn dyn. 1457Test. Ebor. (Surtees) II. 207 Att Saynt Nicholas auter before the stall quer I sitt at mese. 1539in Extr. Aberd. Reg. (1844) I. 159, I sell leid the to the place for the freir swewyt the. 1567Sc. Acts Jas. VI (1814) III. 23/2 The Superintendent, and Ministeris of that Prouince quhair the benefice lyis. a1600Montgomerie Sonn. xlviii. 2 In hauthornes vher thou hyds thy self and hants. 1697Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 752 Th' unhappy Climes, where Spring was never known. 1788Picken Poems 27 At yon burnie..Whar the shinan peebles lie. 1835Marryat Jacob Faithful xlv, I hastened to the black hole where Tom was confined. 1893M. Pemberton Iron Pirate iii, Looking for all the world like some great dog that has entered a house where dogs are forbidden.
b. Introducing an additional statement, the sense being complete without the relative clause: In or at which place; and there.
a1300Cursor M. 950 Vnto þe wreched werld to gang, Quare þou sal thinc þou liues to lang. 1375Barbour Bruce i. 354 To Sanct Androws he come..Quhar the byschop..Resavyt him. c1420Anturs Arth. xxxvii, By þat on plumtone land a palais was piȝte, Were neuer freke opone folde had fouȝtene biforne. 1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 5 b, Theyr probacyon in deserte, where god proued theyr fayth and hope. a1586Montgomerie Misc. Poems xlviii. 222 Then to the Douns, vhair that we raid a space. 1632Milton L'Allegro 72 Russet Lawns, and Fallows Gray, Where the nibling flocks do stray. 1766Goldsm. Vic. W. xiv, We were shewn into a little back room, where there was only a venerable old man. 1820Keats Lamia i. 380 A pillar'd porch..Where hung a silver lamp. 1882Besant All Sorts xxviii, I have been in America, where, if anywhere, the people have it their own way.
8. as compound or simple relative: (In, or to, the place) to which; whither.
13..Cursor M. 1154 (Gött.) Wid all þu sal biholden vile, Quar þu wendis in exile. 1508Reg. Privy Seal Scot. I. 250/2 Quhether the saidis P. and J. pass in the realme of France or uther partis quhare ples thaim. 1594Shakes. Rich. III, i. ii. 106 He is in heauen, where thou shalt neuer come. 1655in Nicholas Papers (Camden) III. 209 A letter..which..hee vndertooke to transmitt where it was directed. 1774Chesterfield Lett. I. i. 2 Holland, where you are going, is, by far, the finest..of the Seven United Provinces. 1852Mrs. Stowe Uncle Tom's C. xxvi, Tom..looked up for help where he had always been used to look. 1893M. Pemberton Iron Pirate i, Him I am going to meet in this Paris where I go without aim.
9. In generalized or indef. sense: In, or to, any (or every) place in, or to, which; wherever.
The indef. sense is more explicitly expressed by the addition of ever, so, † sum: see wherever, whereso, wheresome, wheresomever.
c1200Ormin 5904 Whære o lande summ itt iss Þatt mann off Goddspell spelleþþ. c1205Lay. 3320 Lete we sum þis mochele folc fare wher [later text woder] ha wulleð. 1297R. Glouc. (Rolls) 6617 Euere ware he com gode lawes he broȝte. 13..Cursor M. 6136 (Gött.) Mas sacrifis ȝour lauerd vntill, Quar and hou so þat ȝe will. a1352Minot Poems (ed. Hall) ix. 20 None letes him þe way to wende whore he will. 1395E.E. Wills 8 Ware that euer I deye. 14..in Tundale's Vis. (1843) 99 Lett thi name wher we rydy or gon..Be owre defence ageyn owre mortal fon. 1552Huloet, Where you will, ubilibet. 1605Shakes. Lear iv. v. 10 Where he arriues, he moues All hearts against vs. 1781Cowper Table T. 298 Sing where you please. 1865Dickens Mut. Fr. iii. viii, I won't stand in your way. Go where you like.
** In general and figurative senses.
10. as compound relative.
a. In the passage or part (of a writing) in which; at, or to, the point or stage (of action, speech, etc.) at which.
c1400Rule St. Benet (verse) 206 In his godspel, whaire he says þus: ‘Nolo mortem peccatoris’. c1450J. Capgrave Life St. Aug. Prol., In þe first capitle Ad Romanos, where he saide þat he was dettour on-to wise men and onwise. 1580R. Parsons Brief Disc. 40 Throughe out the scripture, where Idoles are forbidden, they translate it Images. 1622Peacham Compl. Gent. xi. 97 But we returne where we left. 1661in Extr. St. Papers rel. Friends Ser. ii. (1911) 126, I marked the booke where there is a passage full of treason. 1907Blackw. Mag. Jan. 136/2 Where Powell parted company most fiercely from the Radicals was in his steadfast patriotism.
b. (a) In a or the case in which (often nearly = when 8); in the circumstances, position, or condition in which; in that respect or particular in which. (Sometimes with implication of contrast or opposition: cf. 12 b.)
1387Trevisa Higden (Rolls) V. 227 Were þe socour of the watir faillede þere men schulde defende hem in þe lond by help of þe wal. c1420? Lydg. Assembly of Gods 1634 He wold deele where he had no charge. 1513Douglas æneis iv. Prol. 199 Quhar schame is lost quyte schent is womanheid. 1591Shakes. Two Gent. v. iv. 44 When women cannot loue, where they're belou'd. 1635Quarles Embl. i. xii, Ther's nothing wholsome, where the whole's infected. 1766Fordyce Serm. Yng. Women (1767) I. v. 192 We cannot be easy, where we are not safe. 1824Scott St. Ronan's xxii, ‘By my soul, Clara, I will make you repent this!’ said Mowbray, with more violence than he usually exhibited where his sister was concerned. 1850Newman Diff. Anglicans ix. 221 They are rude where they should be reverent. 1918Act 8 Geo. V c. 5. §1 (1) Where it is proposed to make any such Order..a draft of the Order shall be presented to each House of Parliament.
(b) Contextually indicating a person or persons as the object of love or marriage.
1611Beaum. & Fl. King & No K. iii. i, O she is far from any stubbornness,..and no doubt will like Where you would have her. 1859Geo. Eliot A. Bede i. iv, Thee know'st we canna love just where other folks 'ud have us. 1878Hardy Ret. Native i. iv, I saw that..it would be better she should marry where she wished.
c. with construction as in 6: = † a case in which; † a person to whom; the point or particular in which. (Cf. when 5.)
a1300K. Horn 691 (Camb. MS.), Ihc herde whar he sede, & his swerd forþ leide, To bringe þe of lyue. 1375Barbour Bruce xi. 39, I herd neuir quhar so lang varnyng Wes gevin. 1601Shakes. Jul. C. i. ii. 59, I haue heard, Where many of the best respect in Rome..Haue wish'd that Noble Brutus had his eyes. 1611― Cymb. ii. iv. 111 The Vowes of Women, Of no more bondage be, to where they are made, Then they are to their Vertues. Mod. That was where he failed. (colloq.) That's just where it is!
(b) In U.S. use freq. equivalent to that conj. (see also quot. 1931).
1927E. O'Neill Marco Millions ii. ii. 122, I can see where I'll have to be telling her what to do every second. 1931G. O. Curme Syntax 245 This old use of where with the force of a noun + in which is still heard in colloquial speech: ‘This morning I read in the Tribune where (in the literary language an account in which) a boy killed his father.’ 1938D. Runyon Furthermore iii. 51, I see by the papers where three Brooklyn citizens are scragged. 1958T. Capote Breakfast at Tiffany's 110 [I] had read where the Trawlers were countersuing for divorce. 1965New Yorker 15 May 45, I see where the St. Regis has changed hands again. 1976National Observer (U.S.) 14 Aug. 2/4, I can see where people might think that Kelley doesn't know what's going on in his own organization.
d. In colloq. phr. where it's (he's, she's) at: the true or essential nature of a situation (or person); the true state of affairs; a place of central activity. Cf. at prep. 1 d. orig. U.S.
1903[see at prep. 1 d]. 1965Daily Mail 2 Oct. 5/2 What's the phrase you use for being in touch?.. Where it's at. 1967Listener 26 Oct. 522/3 As Dylan says, ‘I'll let you be in my dream, if I can be in yours.’ I think I know where he's at. 1971Melody Maker 9 Oct. 17/5 The musicians frequently became frustrated..not really believing their own bands were where it was at. 1974R. M. Pirsig Zen & Art of Motorcycle Maintenance x. 117 That, today, is where it is at, and will continue to be at for a long time to come. 1977W. J. Weatherby Home in Dark xiii. 69 She was always a housewife at heart. She just took too long to find out where she was at.
e. U.S. dial. to where, to or at a point, position, etc., such that; to such an extent that. Occas. with omission of to.
1933M. K. Rawlings South Moon Under xvi. 157 Is your loggin' to where you kin leave it for a whiles? 1938― Yearling xvi. 181 My grand-pappy got hisself stung oncet to where he was in the bed a fortnight. 1960H. Lee To kill Mockingbird xi. 109 Having developed my talent to where I could throw up a stick and almost catch it coming down. 1969B. K. Green Wild Cow Tales 247, I would pitch a rope over a steer's neck and give it a whip-like motion to where the knot would come back under his neck on the ground back on my side. 1974N. Guidici in S. Terkel Working vi. 316, I want to have enough money where I wouldn't have to be a bum on the street.
11. as simple relative.
a. Introducing a defining or restrictive clause (cf. 7 a): In or at which; † rarely with person as antecedent, In whom.
c1500Melusine 238 She consyderyng the daunger where bothe she & her peple had be. 1585Jas. VI Ess. Poesie (Arb.) 53 Ignorants obdurde, quhair wilful errour lyis. 1593Shakes. Rich. II, v. ii. 5 York. Where did I leaue? Duch. At that sad stoppe, my Lord, Where rude misgouern'd hands..Threw dust..on King Richards head. 1692Dryden St. Euremont's Ess. 98 There is no life so regular, where particular Actions don't sometimes exceed the general habit and conduct. 1792Jrnl. Ho. Comm. XLVII. 641/1 In a Case where the Officers had broken into a Bedchamber. 1887W. P. Frith Autobiogr. I. xxi. 284 It is difficult to put one's finger on the precise spot where confidence merges into conceit.
b. Introducing an additional statement (cf. 7 b): In or at which; and there; hence, † whereupon, and then.
1377Langl. P. Pl. B. v. 283 Who so leueth nouȝte þis be soth loke in þe sauter glose, In miserere mei deus, where I mene treuthe. 1423Jas. I Kingis Q. lxi, With that anon ryght sche toke vp a sang, Quhare come anon mo birdis and alight. 1591Shakes. Two Gent. i. i. 29 To be in loue; where scorne is bought with grones. 1634Sir T. Herbert Trav. 67 The Agent for the English Merchants inuited vs to a Banquet, where he shewed a heartie Entertainment. 1694tr. Marten's Voy. Spitzbergen in Acc. Sev. Late Voy. ii. 128 The Seamen let them alone until the Whale be killed, where they take him without any trouble. 1781Cowper Truth 372 The controversial field, Where deists, always foil'd, yet scorn to yield. 1831Scott Kenilw. Introd., The Yorkshire Tragedy, a play erroneously ascribed to Shakspeare, where a Rake..throws his wife down stairs.
c. to the point where, to a situation, condition, extent, etc., such that.
1938F. Scott Fitzgerald Let. 22 Feb. (1964) 569 If it ever came to the point where you thought you ought to lay up under medical care, his is the sanitarium which I should choose. 1960Radio Amateur's Handbk. (ed. 37) 190/2 Adjust the potentiometer..to the point where the oscillator cannot be heard between dots and dashes at normal keying speed. 1968Chomsky & Halle Sound Pattern Eng. 329 Our investigations of these features have not progressed to a point where a discussion in print would be useful. 1970P. Whittle Probability v. 100 Models which can be simple, without being idealized to the point where they have no practical value.
12.
†a. It being the case that; in view of the fact that; forasmuch as, inasmuch as: = whereas 2; cf. when 9 a. (Chiefly in legal or other formal documents.) Obs.
1411Rolls of Parlt. III. 650/1 First, where the forsaid Lord the Roos.. compleyneth hym by a Bille, surmettyng on the same Robert [etc.]. c1450Godstow Reg. 25 Women of relygyone, in redynge bokys of latyn, byn excusyd of grete vndurstondyng, where it is not her modyr tonge. 1548–9(Mar.) Bk. Com. Prayer Pref., And where heretofore, there hath been great diuersitie..within this realme: Now from henceforth, [etc.]. 1562–3N.C. Wills (Surtees) II. 36 Where that..Hadoile the smythe hathe gyven to me his eldest sonne Christopher as my owne, I will he be put unto the schoale. 1599in 10th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. v. 336 Where it is considered by the Maior, Sheriffs, and cittizens of this citie how greatly the city is impoverished. 1637Bk. Com. Pr. Scot. Table & Kal., And where [1662 whereas] the Cxix. psalme is divided into xxij. portions,..it is so ordered [etc.].
b. In adversative sense: While on the contrary: = when 9 b, whereas 3.
c1380Wyclif Sel. Wks. III. 358 It fordoiþ Cristis privylege, þat where Cristene men shulden be free, now þei ben nedid to hire a preest. c1440Generydes 1134 Now A dayis I lese all that I wanne, Where here before I was a threfty man. 1542Udall Erasm. Apoph. 62 Purple in those dayes was for the wearyng of none but kynges & princes, wher now it is communely taken vp with euery sowter. 1596Edw. III iv. iii, And, where tofore I loued thee as Villeirs, Heereafter Ile embrace thee as my selfe. 1668Rolle Abridgm., Action sur Case 40 He swore, that the Wood was worth 40s. where it was dear of 13s. 4d. 1681in Pepys Diary & Corr. 11 Apr., All Baptist's bases are singable, where many of Pedro's are not so. 1929R. A. Cram Catholic Church & Art iv. 57 Where the pagan architecture had been an exterior art..and where Roman and Byzantine art had striven to achieve space in its simplest form, the North worked for interior space.
III. Indefinite and substantival uses.
13. With preceding qualifying words (one, other, etc.), forming adverbial phrases: In or at (one, another, etc.) place.
Chiefly as second element in compounds: see allwhere, anywhere, aywhere, eachwhere, elsewhere, everywhere, manywhere, nowhere, onewhere, otherwhere, somewhere, wide-where.
1508in Dunbar's Poems (S.T.S.) II. 321 Suth it is, and sene in all our quhare, No erdly thing bot for a tyme may lest. 1526Tindale Luke xiii. 33 For it cannott be that a prophet perisshe eny other where save att Jerusalem. 1528― Obed. Chr. Man 74 We must stere vp some warre one where or a nother. c1550Syr Tryam. in Utterson E.P.P. (1817) I. 58 They hunted and rode many a where. c1586C'tess Pembroke Ps. cvii. xii, How many where doth he convert Well watred grounds to thirsty sand? 1650Ambrose Ultima (1659) 186 His Apostles are scattered in the garden, his garments at the Crosse, his blood how many wheres! a1694Tillotson Serm. VII. 108 Though they be very active, yet they can be but one where at once. 1722De Foe Col. Jack i. (1809) 10 He got victuals enough one where or other. 1815J. Foster in Life & Corr. (1846) I. 453, I still preach, one where or other.
14. as n. Place, locality; in mod. use esp. the place at which the thing spoken of is or happens.
1443–9Pecock Donet xvi. (1921) 92 More of þis mater..may be seen..in þe book of dyuyne office in manye a wher. c1449― Repr. i. v. 27 In othere wheris of my writingis. 1560T. Phaer æneid. ix. 58 He troub[l]ous vewes their wals, & ryding sekes ech entring where. 1563Sackville Induct. Mirr. Mag. lxvi, In euery where or sworde or fyer they taste. 1590Spenser F.Q. iii. iv. 19 Finding the Nymph a sleepe in secret wheare. 1635J. Hayward tr. Biondi's Banish'd Virg. 36 Resolved to leave no where thereabouts unsearched for her. 1720De Foe Ser. Refl. Crusoe, Vis. Angelic World iv. (1801) 223 For if we are to be, we must have a where. 1813Byron Corsair i. xiv, The why—the where—what boots it now to tell? 1863Longfellow tr. Dante, Parad. xxvii. 109 In this heaven there is no other Where Than in the Mind Divine. 1896A. Austin England's Darling i. i, While he roams abroad,..Spying the where and whither of his foes.
IV.
15. In senses of branches I and II, in comb. with advs. and preps.
For history of this use see here adv. 16; cf. there 17.
a. With advs., as † whereforth; whereaway, whither, in what direction.
b. With preps.: = what or which († occas. whom), as whereagainst, wherealong, whereamong(st, † wherenigh, whereover, whereround, † wherewithout. See also main words, whereabout to wherewithal.
1526Tindale Luke xxi. 15, I will geve you a mouth and wysdom *were agaynste all youre adversarys shall not be able to speake. 1607Shakes. Cor. iv. v. 113 That body, where against My grained Ash an hundred times hath broke. 1622Mabbe tr. Aleman's Guzman d'Alf. i. 251, I was..driven to seeke out some Wall, where-against to leane.
1768Tucker Lt. Nat. I. i. vii. 201 The organs or other channels *wherealong they pass.
1582Munday Engl. Rom. Lyfe v. 55 Reliques, *where among he named the Nayles, that nailed Christe on the Crosse. 1620tr. Boccaccio's Decam. 160 Isabella fell into abundance of teares, where⁓among she mingled many sighes and groanes. 1929R. Bridges Testament of Beauty i. 17 Where⁓among hath the sceptic honourable place.
1578Lyte Dodoens iv. xxviii. 485 Growing almost as high as the wheat or corne..*whereamongst it groweth.
1535Stewart Cron. Scot. (Rolls) II. 637 And *quhair awa, quhither to hevin or hell. 1842Whistle-binkie Ser. iii. 84 He daunert on, ne'er thinkin' whar-awa. 1867Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Where away? in what bearing? a question to the man at the mast-head to designate in what direction a strange sail lies. 1885Harper's Mag. Jan. 212/2 Much pondering where⁓away The Northeast Passage lay.
c1290St. Cuthbert 77 in S. Eng. Leg. 361 He ne miȝte nouȝt finde is fore, *Ȝware⁓forth he wende a-wei in snowe ne in þe flore. 1393Langl. P. Pl. C. xvii. 339 Ac þorw werkes þou myght wite wher forþ he walkeþ. 1642Iack Puffe 16 in Hazl. E.P.P. IV. 315 The shockt mount, whereforth a Mouse did clime.
1658Burton Comm. Itin. Antoninus 90 Our learned Antiquary therefore hath shewed very good judgement in descrying the ground, *where-nigh it stood of yore.
1475Bk. Noblesse (Roxb.) 72 It was never seen that any countre..did encrece welle *wherover many nedeles officers..was reignyng..over theym. 1583Stubbes Anat. Abus. ii. (1882) 74 Wherouer the holie Ghost hath made them ouerseers. 1853T. Parker Disc. Death Webster Wks. 1865 XII. 18 A great gulf.., whereover neither Dives nor Abraham, nor yet Moses himself, can pass. 1883Swinburne Cent. Roundels 68 Love lies bleeding in the bed whereover Roses lean.
1910Spectator 4 June 927/2 The storm-grey Manse, *Where⁓round tall rhododendrons dance.
1567Jewel Def. Apol. v. xiii. 572 The conductes of Water, *wherewithout menne cannot commodiously liue. 1578Bk. Chr. Prayers B ij, Thou light, wherewithout all things are deepe darcknesse. 1899Beerbohm More 95 Mere masses of colour, crude intensity of conception, wherewithout posters fail, were quite unnecessary.
▪ II. where
obs. f. choir, were, whether. |