whatsoever
- 01 C1 Advanced
adv.used after words like 'none', 'nothing', or 'no' to make a negative statement stronger.
adv.functions as an intensifier in negative clauses, typically following a noun phrase or pronoun to emphasize 'at all'.
Simple“I have no interest whatsoever in watching that movie.”
In context“The witness claimed to have no knowledge whatsoever of the events that transpired in the warehouse that evening.”
UsageAlways follows a negative word like 'no', 'none', 'nothing', or 'any' in a negative context.
Teacher's tipWhile dictionaries often list this as an adverb or determiner, it is best taught to students as a 'negative intensifier' that always sits at the end of a phrase.
PitfallI have whatsoever no money. I have no money whatsoever.This word must come after the noun or the negative word it is emphasizing, never before it.
Synonymsat allwhatever - 02 C2 Proficiency
det.an older or very formal way to say 'whatever'.
det.used as a relative determiner or pronoun in formal or literary contexts; largely superseded by 'whatever' in modern usage.
Simple“He had the right to use the land for whatsoever purpose he chose.”
In context“The charter granted the guild authority over whatsoever trade might be established within the city walls.”
UsageUsed before a noun to mean 'any at all'.
Teacher's tipThis sense is rare in modern speech and is mostly found in legal documents or older literature.
Synonyms
“He has tasted approved schools and Borstals.” The Sun offered no evidence whatsoever for the implication that Zephaniah was a rapist, as the headline suggested.”
“The guards who’d failed to stop the uprising, meanwhile, were disciplined by being kept in the camp “for six weeks after the outbreak” and granted “no leave whatsoever,” according to Sergeant Ashley Cooper .”
From Middle English whatsoever. By surface analysis, what + so + ever.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.