# whatever

/ˌhwəˈtɛvɝ/ (US) · /wɒtˈɛvɐ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/whatever
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. anything that

pronoun · CEFR A2

anything or everything that happens or exists.

For teachers: the whole or any part of what; used as a relative pronoun to refer to anything that occurs or is the case.

- You can eat whatever you like from the fridge.
- The contract stipulates that the consultant must provide whatever assistance is necessary to complete the project by the end of the fiscal year.

### 2. any kind of

determiner · CEFR B1

any kind of thing, no matter what it is.

For teachers: used to emphasize that the specific type or amount of something does not change the situation.

- Whatever decision you make, I will support you.
- Whatever small progress we made during the morning session was quickly undone by the technical failures in the afternoon.

### 3. at all

adverb · CEFR B2

used after a negative word to mean 'at all'.

For teachers: used for emphasis after a negative statement or a noun phrase with 'no'; often interchangeable with 'whatsoever'.

- I have no interest in that subject whatever.
- The witness claimed to have no knowledge whatever of the financial transactions mentioned in the indictment.

### 5. unimpressive

adjective · CEFR C1 · Slang · Informal

not very good or not special.

For teachers: describing something as mediocre, unexceptional, or not worth much attention.

- The movie was just whatever—I wouldn't watch it again.
- The food at the new bistro was a bit whatever, certainly not worth the high prices they were charging for such basic ingredients.

## Examples

- You can eat whatever you want for dinner.
- The manager told the team to do whatever is necessary to finish the report by Friday morning.
- The artist insisted that she would paint whatever inspired her, regardless of whether the gallery owners believed the work would be commercially successful in the current market.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.