ENGLISH ROOT WORD: who "who", "what" from Old English hwa, hwæt

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【who】 is a [English Root word(stem)] from the Old English word(s) "hwa," and "hwæt." It carries the basic meaning of "who," "what," and "why." from PIE *kwo- "a big thing"

[English words in the top 5000 most frequently used containing the root "who"]

what ****[28] You use what in questions when you ask for specific information about something that you do not know.
whatever ****[1956] anything or everything that
whatsoever ☆[4804] You use whatsoever after a noun group in order to emphasize a negative statement.
whether ****[844] You use whether when you are talking about a choice or doubt between two or more alternatives.
who ****[41] You use who in questions when you ask about the name or identity of a person or group of people.
whoever **[3608] used for emphasis instead of ''who'' in questions, typically expressing surprise or confusion
whose ***[2489] that or those belonging to a person
why ****[94] used at the beginning of a statement especially to express surprise

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[WORD ROOT]root who
[VARIATIONS OF ROOT] who, what, whom, why, whe
[ETYMOLOGY]root (Old English) hwa, hwæt
[MEANING]root who, what, why

【DETAILs OF ORIGIN(ETYMOLOGY】

• 【Old English】 hwa who
• 【Old English】 hwæt [neut, of hwa] ⑴why, wherefore; indeed, ⑵surely, truly; sharp, ⑶keen, bold

Please see the Word information in detail as follows;

★★★★(top 2,000) ★★★(top 3,500) ★★(top 4,500) ☆(top 6,000)

what ★★★★[28] interrog pronoun from what 〈 who
【DEFINITION】 You use what in questions when you ask for specific information about something that you do not know.
【ROOTs】 what(who); who
【Etymology】 《Old English hwæt》 [neut, of hwa] ⑴why, wherefore; indeed, ⑵surely, truly; sharp, ⑶keen, bold

whatever ★★★★[1956] reletive pronoun from what 〈 who
【DEFINITION】 anything or everything that
【COMPOSITION】 what + ever
【ROOTs】 ⑴ what(who); who ⑵ ever; ever
【Etymology】 《Old English hwæt》 [neut, of hwa] ⑴why, wherefore; indeed, ⑵surely, truly; sharp, ⑶keen, bold

whatsoever ☆[4804] adjective from what 〈 who
【DEFINITION】 You use whatsoever after a noun group in order to emphasize a negative statement.
【COMPOSITION】 what + so + ever
【ROOTs】 ⑴ what(who); who ⑵ so; so ⑶ ever; ever
【Etymology】 《Old English hwæt》 [neut, of hwa] ⑴why, wherefore; indeed, ⑵surely, truly; sharp, ⑶keen, bold

whether ★★★★[844] conjuction
【DEFINITION】 You use whether when you are talking about a choice or doubt between two or more alternatives.
【SYNONYM】 if
【ROOTs】 ⑴ whe(who); who, what, why ⑵ ther; two
【Etymology】 《Greek poteros》

who ★★★★[41] interrog pronoun from who
【DEFINITION】 ① You use who in questions when you ask about the name or identity of a person or group of people.
② You use who at the beginning of a relative clause when specifying the person or group of people you are talking about or when giving more information about them.
【ROOTs】 who; who
【Etymology】 《Old English hwa》 who

whoever ★★[3608] pronoun from who
【DEFINITION】 used for emphasis instead of ‘who’ in questions, typically expressing surprise or confusion
【COMPOSITION】 who + ever
【ROOTs】 ⑴ who; who ⑵ ever; ever
【Etymology】 《Old English hwa》 who

whose ★★★[2489] pronoun from who
【DEFINITION】 that or those belonging to a person
【ROOTs】 ⑴ who; who ⑵ se(s); adverb suffix
【Etymology】 《Old English hwæs》 [genitive of hwa, hwæt]

why ★★★★[94] interrog adverb from why 〈 who
【DEFINITION】 used at the beginning of a statement especially to express surprise
【ROOTs】 why(who); who, what, why
【Etymology】 《Old English hwi》 [instrumental case of hwa/hwæt] why

Other words containing "who"; whomever

(※ Proto-Indo-European (PIE) is the theorized common ancestor of the Indo-European language family. Its proposed features have been derived by linguistic reconstruction from documented Indo-European languages.)

【OTHER ROOTs; 】

while
where
well
weigh
week
weak
way
watch
ware
ward-

 

 

 

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