When we add the ending “-ever” to interrogative pronouns such as “what” o “where”, they serve as pronouns, adjectives or conjunctions with a meaning more or less equivalent to “any”.
When we use these compounds as interrogatives, they express surprise, indignation or exasperation. To demonstrate their various uses, below are several examples of these compounds.
Whatever
Meaning: anything; everything; no matter what; of any kind
| | Whatever I do, it doesn’t seem to make a difference. She still doesn’t like me. |
| | Whatever you do, don’t keep them waiting. |
| | He is so rich, he can buy whatever he wants. |
| | Whatever classes you choose, you are sure to learn a lot. |
| | Whatever time you finish, don’t forget to call us. |
Whichever
Meaning: any/whatever one/ones of a group
Remember: As we saw in the lesson on What v. Which, the use of which implies a limited number of possible responses.
Remember: As we saw in the lesson on What v. Which, the use of which implies a limited number of possible responses.
| | It’s a small town. Whichever way you turn, you always seem to end up in the same place. |
| | Take whichever one you like. |
| | Whichever jacket I wear, I’m still going to be cold. |
Wherever
Meaning: in, at or to any place
| | Please sit wherever you like. |
| | Wherever I go, I always feel like a foreigner. |
| | His dog follows him wherever he goes. |
Whenever
Meaning: at any or every time
| | The party starts at 9 o’clock, but you can come whenever you want. |
| | Whenever I call, he is always out. |
| | We can start the classes whenever is best for you. |
| | Whenever did she finally arrive? |
Whoever/Whomever
Meaning: any person at all
| | Whoever eats their vegetables can have dessert. |
| | I will date whoever I want! |
| | Whoever called last night didn’t leave a message. |
However
Meaning (adverb): no matter how; any manner or way
| | You can do it however you want, but I suggest you be careful. |
| | However much money he has, it’s never enough. |
| | However long it takes, it doesn’t matter, it just needs to be finished. |
| | However did you finish it? |
| | I don’t usually drink coffee, however I am very tired this morning and need the caffeine. |
| | She would like to come to the party, however it’s better that she stay home and rest as she has been ill for days now. |
Note: As we saw in the lesson Linking Words: Contrasting Information, when we use “however” as a conjunction, it implies a contrast between two statements.
| | I don’t usually drink coffee, however I am very tired this morning and need the caffeine. |
| | She would like to come to the party, however it’s better that she stay home and rest as she has been ill for days now. |
Cuando añadimos la terminación “-ever” a los pronombres interrogativos como “what” o “where”, nos sirven como pronombres, adjetivos o conjunciones con un significado más o menos equivalente a “cualquier/a que” en español. El problema de traducirlos directamente es que las reglas de uso son diferentes en inglés y español. Como se ve en los ejemplos que siguen, lo importante es el significado de estas palabras que en general significan “no importa” o “da igual”.
Cuando los utilizamos como interrogativos, expresan extrañeza, sorpresa, indignación o exasperación. A continuación tienes algunos ejemplos para demostrar sus varios usos.
Whatever (Cualquier que/lo que quiera)
“Whatever” puede ser un adjetivo o pronombre y significa “cualquier que” o “lo que quiera”.
Ejemplos:
| | Whatever I do, it doesn’t seem to make a difference. She still doesn’t like me.(Haga lo que haga, no parece haber ninguna diferencia. Sigo sin gustarle.) |
| | Whatever you do, don’t keep them waiting.(Sea como sea, no les hagas esperar.) |
| | He is so rich, he can buy whatever he wants.(Él es tan rico que puede comprar lo que quiera.) |
| | Whatever classes you choose, you are sure to learn a lot.(Cualquier clase que elijas, seguro que aprenderás mucho.) |
| | Whatever time you finish, don’t forget to call us.(Termines cuando termines, no olvides llamarnos.) |
| | Whatever happened here?(¿Qué ha pasado aquí?) |
Whichever (Cualquiera que)
“Whichever” es un pronombre o adjetivo que significa “cualquiera” en español. Como hemos visto en la lección de What vs. Which, el uso de “which” implica un número limitado de respuestas posibles. Como tal, “whichever” significa que no importa cuál entre el número limitado de opciones posibles.
“Whichever” es un pronombre o adjetivo que significa “cualquiera” en español. Como hemos visto en la lección de What vs. Which, el uso de “which” implica un número limitado de respuestas posibles. Como tal, “whichever” significa que no importa cuál entre el número limitado de opciones posibles.
Ejemplos:
| | It’s a small town. Whichever way you turn, you always seem to end up in the same place.(Es un pueblo pequeño. Gires por donde gires, parece que acabes en el mismo sitio.) |
| | Take whichever one you like.(Coge el que te guste.) |
| | Whichever jacket I wear, I’m still going to be cold.(Cualquiera de las chaquetas que me ponga, igualmente tendré frío.) |
Wherever (Dondequiera que)
“Wherever” es un conjunción que significa “dondequiera” o “en cualquier lugar o parte”.
Ejemplos:
| | Please sit wherever you like.(Por favor, siéntate donde quieras.) |
| | Wherever I go, I always feel like a foreigner.(Vaya donde vaya, siempre me siento como un extranjero.) |
| | His dog follows him wherever he goes.(Su perro le sigue vaya donde vaya.) |
| | Wherever did they go?(¿Dónde se fueron?) |
Whenever (Siempre que)
“Whenever” es un conjunción que significa “siempre que” o “cuando sea”.
Ejemplos:
| | The party starts at 9 o’clock, but you can come whenever you want.(La fiesta empieza a las 9, pero puedes venir cuando quieras.) |
| | Whenever I call, he is always out.(Cada vez que llamo, está fuera.) |
| | We can start the classes whenever is best for you.(Podemos empezar las clases cuando te vaya mejor.) |
| | Whenever did she finally arrive?(¿Cuando llegó al final?) |
Whoever/Whomever (Quienquiera que)
“Whoever” es un pronombre que significa “quienquiera” en español.
Ejemplos:
| | Whoever eats their vegetables can have dessert.(Quien coma sus verduras tendrá postre.) |
| | I will date whoever I want!(¡Saldré con quien quiera!) |
| | Whoever called last night didn’t leave a message.(Quienquiera que llamara anoche no dejó un mensaje.) |
| | Whoever made this mess?(¿Quien hizo este desorden?) |
However (Como quiera)
Como adverbio, “however” significa “como quiera”.
Ejemplos:
| | You can do it however you want, but I suggest you be careful.(Puedes hacerlo como quieras, pero te sugiero que tengas cuidado.) |
| | However much money he has, it’s never enough.(Da igual cuanto dinero tenga, nunca es suficiente.) |
| | However long it takes, it doesn’t matter, it just needs to be finished.(Da igual cuanto se tarde, no importa, sólo hay que terminarlo.) |
| | However did you finish it?(¿Como lo terminaste?) |
Ejemplos:
| | I don’t usually drink coffee, however I am very tired this morning and need the caffeine.(Normalmente no bebo café, no obstante, estoy muy cansado esta mañana y necesito la cafeína.) |
| | She would like to come to the party, however it’s better that she stay home and rest as she has been ill for days now.(Le gustaría venir a la fiesta, sin embargo, es mejor que se quede en casa y descanse porque ya lleva días enferma.) |
Nota: Como hemos visto en la lección Linking Words: Contrasting Information, cuando se usa “however” como conjunción, significa “sin embargo” o “no obstante”.
Ejemplos:
| | I don’t usually drink coffee, however I am very tired this morning and need the caffeine.(Normalmente no bebo café, no obstante, estoy muy cansado esta mañana y necesito la cafeína.) |
| | She would like to come to the party, however it’s better that she stay home and rest as she has been ill for days now.(Le gustaría venir a la fiesta, sin embargo, es mejor que se quede en casa y descanse porque ya lleva días enferma.) |
