Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Whither
Whith′er
,adv.
1.
To what place; – used interrogatively;
“Whider may I flee?” as,
whither
goest thou? Chaucer.
Sir Valentine,
whither
away so fast? Shakespeare
2.
To what or which place; – used relatively.
That no man should know . . .
whither
that he went. Chaucer.
We came unto the land
whither
thou sentest us. Num. xiii. 27.
3.
To what point, degree, end, conclusion, or design; whereunto; whereto; – used in a sense not physical.
Nor have I . . .
whither
to appeal. Milton.
Any whither
, to any place; anywhere.
[Obs.]
“Any whither, in hope of life eternal.” Jer. Taylor.
– No whither
, to no place; nowhere.
[Obs.]
2 Kings v. 25.
Syn. – Where.
–
Whither
, Where
. Whither properly implies motion to place, and where rest in a place. Whither is now, however, to a great extent, obsolete, except in poetry, or in compositions of a grave and serious character and in language where precision is required. Where has taken its place, as in the question, “Where are you going?” Webster 1828 Edition
Whither
WHITHER
,adv.
1.
To what place, interrogatively. Whither goest thou?Whither away so fast?
2.
To what place, absolutely.I strayd, I knew not whither.
3.
To which place, relatively.Whither when as they came, they fell at words.
4.
To what point or degree.5.
Whithersoever.Definition 2024
whither
whither
English
Adverb
whither (not comparable)
- (archaic, formal or literary) To where.
- 1611, King James BibleWikisource, John 8:14:
- 1883, Robert Louis Stevenson, “The Sea-chest”, in Treasure IslandWikisource:
- [W]hat greatly encouraged me, it was in an opposite direction from that whence the blind man had made his appearance and whither he had presumably returned.
- 1885, Robert Louis Stevenson, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, Penguin Red Classics, paperback edition, page 24
- And with the same grave countenance he hurried through his breakfast and drove to the police station, whither the body had been carried.
- 1918, Willa Cather, My Antonia, Mirado Modern Classics, paperback edition, page 8
- The wagon jolted on, carrying me I knew not whither.
-
Usage notes
- This word is unusual in modern usage; where is much more common. It is more often encountered in older works, or when used poetically.
- Do not confuse with whether or wither.
- Compare to the inanimate pronoun "whereto" which follows the pattern of "preposition + what" or "preposition + which".
Derived terms
Terms derived from whither
Antonyms
Related terms
Translations
to which place
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Verb
whither (third-person singular simple present whithers, present participle whithering, simple past and past participle whithered)
- (intransitive, obsolete, dialectal) To wuther.