however

how·ev·er
H4O1W4E1V4E1R1
UK/haʊˈɛvə/Canada, US/haʊˈɛvɚ/New York City/hɑˈwɛvə(ɹ)/Australia/hæɔˈevə/

adverb

Nevertheless; yet, still; in spite of that.

“However we do this, it isn't going to work.”

Very commonScrabble 16

Meanings

adverbhowever (not comparable)
  1. conjunctivenot comparableNevertheless; yet, still; in spite of that.

    She wanted to go; however, she decided against it.

    5 more examples

    He told me not to do it. However, I did it anyway. / I did it anyway, however. / I, however, did it anyway.

    I didn't argue with him; I still think, however, that he is wrong.

    Thus, when he drew up instructions in lawyer language, he expressed the important words by an initial, a medial, or a final consonant, and made scratches for all the words between; his clerks, however, understood him very well.

    1892, Walter Besant, “Prologue: Who is Edmund Gray?”, in The Ivory Gate […], New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, […], →OCLC

    That the young Mr. Churchills liked—but they did not like him coming round of an evening and drinking weak whisky-and-water while he held forth on railway debentures and corporation loans. Mr. Barrett, however, by fawning and flattery, seemed to be able to make not only Mrs. Churchill but everyone else do what he desired.

    1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter II, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC

    Mostly, the microbiome is beneficial. It helps with digestion and enables people to extract a lot more calories from their food than would otherwise be possible. Research over the past few years, however, has implicated it in diseases from atherosclerosis to asthma to autism.

    2013 June 29, “A punch in the gut”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8842, pages 72–3

    Synonyms: nonetheless, notwithstanding, that said, still and all, in any case, after all, anyway, all that said

  2. conjunctivenot comparableIn contrast.

    The conference itself went very well. The party afterwards, however, was a disaster.

    1 more example

    It appears, however, that Korsch took the view that a revolutionary theory must be the 'expression' of a movement, and not an instrument forged outside the movement by leaders or theoreticians.

    1978 [1976], Leszek Kołakowski, translated by P[aul] S[teven] Falla, Main Currents of Marxism, volume III: The Breakdown, Oxford: Clarendon Press, translation of Główne nurty marksizmu: rozkład (in Polish), →ISBN, →OCLC, page 318
  3. not comparabledegree; fused relative; degree; fused relativeRegardless of how; no matter how

    However much I study, I never get good grades.

    3 more examples

    However clear you think you've been, and however many questions you may've answered, there'll always remain some doubts.

    Any rule of thumb, however true (it is), is useless unless you understand its underlying logic.

    Elinor, however little concerned in it, joined in their discourse; and Marianne, who had the knack of finding her way in every house to the library, however it might be avoided by the family in general, soon procured herself a book.

    1811, Jane Austen, Sense and Sensibility, Chapter 42

    Synonyms: howsoever, howso, howsoevermuch

  4. not comparablefused relativemannerRegardless of how; regardless of the way in which.

    However we do this, it isn't going to work.

    3 more examples

    Let me know when you've had your interview, however it goes.

    Elinor, however little concerned in it, joined in their discourse; and Marianne, who had the knack of finding her way in every house to the library, however it might be avoided by the family in general, soon procured herself a book.

    1811, Jane Austen, Sense and Sensibility, Chapter 42

    But the real way to build a successful online business is to be better than your rivals at undermining people's control of their own attention. Partly, this is a result of how online advertising has traditionally worked: advertisers pay for clicks, and a click is a click, however it's obtained.

    2013 June 21, Oliver Burkeman, “The tao of tech”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 2, page 48

    Synonyms: howsoever, howso, anyhow

  5. not comparablefused relativemannerIn any way in which; how.

    Wear your hair however you want.

    1 more example

    She offered to help however she could.

  6. informalnot comparablemannerIn any way that one likes or chooses; in a haphazard or spontaneous way.

    I don't care; just do it however.

    1 more example

    Nothing was really planned; things just happened however.

  7. interrogativenot comparableHow ever: an emphatic form of how, used to ask in what manner.

    I thought it was impossible. However were you able to do it?

    Synonyms: how + the dickens

  8. not comparableobsoleteIn any case, at any rate, at all events.

    Our chief end and highest interest is happiness : And this is happiness to be freed from all (if it may) [or] however from the greatest evils.

    c. 1680, John Tillotson
conjunction
  1. proscribedBut, yet, though, although.

    *She wanted to go, however she decided against it.

Synonyms & antonyms

adverbRegardless of how; no matter how

adverbRegardless of how; regardless of the way in which.

adverbHow ever: an emphatic form of how, used to ask in what manner.

Similar
how + the dickens

More synonyms by meaning

adverbdespite anything to the contrary (usually preceding a concession)

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Middle Englishhowever
  2. Englishhowever

From Middle English however, how-ever, how-evere; equivalent to how + -ever. Compare howsoever.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic بِأَيَّةِ طَرِيقَة, عَلَى كُلِّ حَال
  • بِأَيَّةِ طَرِيقَة (biʔayyati ṭarīqa)5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • عَلَى كُلِّ حَال (ʕalā kulli ḥāl)5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Bulgarian все пак
  • все пак (vse pak)to whatever extent or degree
Chinese Cantonese 點都要 /点都要, 係都要 /系都要
  • 點都要 /点都要 (dim² dou¹ jiu³)5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • 係都要 /系都要 (hai⁶ dou¹ jiu³)5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Chinese Mandarin 無論如何 /无论如何
  • 無論如何 /无论如何 (wúlùnrúhé)5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Dutch hoe dan ook
  • hoe dan ook5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Esperanto kiom ajn, iel ajn
  • kiom ajnto whatever extent or degree
  • iel ajn5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Finnish kuinka tahansa, miten tahansa
  • kuinka tahansato whatever extent or degree
  • miten tahansato whatever extent or degree
  • joka tapauksessa5. in any way that one likes or chooses
French peu importe, quoi qu'il en soit
  • peu importeto whatever extent or degree
  • quoi qu'il en soit5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • d'ailleurs5. in any way that one likes or chooses
German egal wie, wie auch immer
  • egal wieto whatever extent or degree
  • wie auch immer5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Hebrew בכל מקרה, בכל זאת
  • בכל מקרה (bekhól mikré)5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • בכל זאת (bekhól zót)5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Hindi वैसे भी
  • वैसे भी (vaise bhī)5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Hungarian bármennyire, akármennyire
  • bármennyireto whatever extent or degree
  • akármennyireto whatever extent or degree
  • bármilyento whatever extent or degree
  • akármilyento whatever extent or degree
  • bárhogy5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • bárhogyan5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • akárhogy5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • akárhogyan5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • bármely/bármilyen módon/formában5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Irish dá
  • dáto whatever extent or degree
Italian comunque, in ogni modo
  • comunque5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • in ogni modo5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Japanese とにかく
  • とにかく (tonikaku)5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Korean 아무튼
  • 아무튼 (amuteun)5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Malay apa-apapun
  • apa-apapun5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Norwegian Bokmål uansett hvor, uten omsyn til hvor
  • uansett hvorto whatever extent or degree
  • uten omsyn til hvorto whatever extent or degree
Portuguese de qualquer forma
  • de qualquer forma5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Romanian oricum
  • oricum5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Russian в любо́м слу́чае
  • в любо́м слу́чае (v ljubóm slúčaje)5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Scottish Gaelic co-dhiù
  • co-dhiù5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Spanish cuantoquiera, cuanto sea
  • cuantoquierato whatever extent or degree
  • cuanto seato whatever extent or degree
  • por más3. no matter how
  • aunque más3. no matter how
  • por muy3. no matter how
  • por mucho3. no matter how
  • mal que bien5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • bien que mal5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • comoquiera5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • comoquier5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • de cualquier modo5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • de cualquier forma5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Swedish hursomhelst
  • hursomhelst5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Turkish neyse
  • neyse5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Ukrainian в будь-якому разі, в будь-якому випадку
  • в будь-якому разі (v budʹ-jakomu razi)5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • в будь-якому випадку (v budʹ-jakomu vypadku)5. in any way that one likes or chooses
  • в уся́кому ра́зі (v usjákomu rázi)5. in any way that one likes or chooses
Welsh er mor, pa mor
  • er morto whatever extent or degree
  • pa morto whatever extent or degree

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with however

All rhymes →

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

however. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/however

MLA

“however.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/however. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “however,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/however.

Source: however on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.