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Origin and history of whoever

whoever(pron.)

"any person whatever," late Old English hwa efre, introducing clauses, see who + ever. By late 14c. as "is there anyone who." Whosoever is attested from c. 1200.

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ever(adv.)

Old English æfre "ever, at any time, always;" of uncertain origin, no cognates in any other Germanic language; perhaps a contraction of a in feore, literally "ever in life" (the expression a to fore is common in Old English writings). First element is almost certainly related to Old English a "always, ever," from Proto-Germanic *aiwi-, extended form of PIE root *aiw- "vital force, life; long life, eternity." Liberman suggests second element is comparative adjectival suffix -re.

Sometimes contracted to e'er in dialect and poetry. Ever began to be used in late Old English as a way to generalize or intensify when, what, where, etc. The sense evolution was from "at any time at all, in any way" to "at any particular time; at some time or another; under any circumstances." Ever so "to whatever extent" is recorded by 1680s. Expression did you ever? (implying "see/do/hear of such a thing") attested by 1840.

who(pron.)

Old English hwa "what person," sometimes also "what; anyone, someone; each; whosoever," from Proto-Germanic *hwas (source also of Old Saxon hwe, Danish hvo, Swedish vem, Old Frisian hwa, Dutch wie, Old High German hwer, German wer, Gothic hvo (fem.) "who"), from PIE root *kwo-, stem of relative and interrogative pronouns.

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A form of argument in which it is shown that whoever maintains a certain proposition must accept one or other of two alternative...
honor
Whoever will look up the passage ( Hamlet I. iv. 16) will see that it means, beyond a doubt, a custom that one deserves more...
plague
late 14c., plage, "affliction, calamity, evil, scourge, severe trouble or vexation;" early 15c., "malignant disease," from Old French plage (14c., Modern French plaie), from Late Latin plaga "affliction; slaughter, destruction," used in Vulgate for "pestilence," from Latin plaga
conform
mid-14c., confourmen, "be obedient (to God), comply," from Old French conformer "conform (to), agree (to), make or be similar, be agreeable" (13c.) and directly from Latin conformare "to fashion, to form, to shape; educate; modify," from assimilated form of com "together" (see co
escrow
1590s, in law, "a writing fully executed by the parties, but put into the custody of a third person to hold until the fulfilment of some condition, when it is to be delivered to the grantee;" from Anglo-French escrowe, from Old French escroe "scrap, small piece, rag, tatter, sing
liberal
mid-14c., "generous," also "nobly born, noble, free;" from late 14c. as "selfless, magnanimous, admirable;" from early 15c. in a bad sense, "extravagant, unrestrained," from Old French liberal "befitting free people; noble, generous; willing, zealous" (12c.), and directly from La
schedule
late 14c., sedule, cedule "ticket, label, slip of paper with writing on it" (a sense now obsolete), from Old French cedule (Modern French cédule), from Late Latin schedula "strip of paper" (in Medieval Latin also "a note, schedule"), diminutive of Latin scheda, scida "one of the
strange
c. 1300, straunge, "from elsewhere, foreign, of another country; unknown, unfamiliar, not belonging to the place where found," also of a country, "unfamiliar, unknown, remote," from Old French estrange "foreign, alien, unusual, unfamiliar, curious; distant; inhospitable; estrange
abortion
1540s, "the expulsion of the fetus before it is viable," originally of deliberate as well as unintended miscarriages; from Latin abortionem (nominative abortio) "miscarriage; abortion, procuring of an untimely birth," noun of action from past-participle stem of aboriri "to miscar

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