which

which
[[t](h)wɪ̱tʃ[/t]]
♦
(Usually pronounced [[t](h)wɪtʃ[/t]] for meanings 2, 3 and 4.)
1) QUEST You use which in questions when there are two or more possible answers or alternatives.

Which do they want me to do, declare war or surrender?...

Which are the ones you really like? Which are the good adverts for you?

DET-QUEST
Which is also a determiner.

Which woman or man do you most admire?... `You go down that passageway over there.' - `Which one?'... Which vitamin supplements are good value?

2) DET You use which to refer to a choice between two or more possible answers or alternatives.

I wanted to know which school it was you went to...

I can't remember which teachers I had...

Scientists have long wondered which parts of the brain are involved in musical tasks.

CONJ-SUBORD
Which is also a conjunction.

In her panic she couldn't remember which was Mr Grainger's cabin... There are so many diets on the market, how do you know which to choose?

3) PRON-REL You use which at the beginning of a relative clause when specifying the thing that you are talking about or when giving more information about it.

Soldiers opened fire on a car which failed to stop at an army checkpoint...

He's based in Banja Luka, which is the largest city in northern Bosnia...

Colic describes a whole variety of conditions in which a horse suffers abdominal pain...

I'm no longer allowed to smoke in any room which he currently occupies.

4) PRON-REL You use which to refer back to an idea or situation expressed in a previous sentence or sentences, especially when you want to give your opinion about it.

They ran out of drink. Which actually didn't bother me because I wasn't drinking...

Since we started in September we have raised fifty thousand pounds, which is pretty good going...

Visited Park West. Viewed a flat, no. 76. Which I like.

DET: DET sing-n
Which is also a determiner.

The chances are you haven't fully decided what you want from your career at the moment, in which case you're definitely not cut out to be a boss yet!

5) PHRASE: V inflects If you cannot tell the difference between two things, you can say that you do not know which is which.

They all look so alike to me that I'm never sure which is which...

It's essential to know which is which as treatments will be quite different.

6) any which way → see way
every which way → see way

English dictionary. 2008.

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Synonyms:
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Look at other dictionaries:

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