Meanings
alternative obsolete whensoëver
- not comparablewhenever; at any time at all
Now or whensoever, provided I be so able as now.
1602, William Shakespeare, Hamlet, act V scene 22 more examples
Again, whereas men affirm they perceive an addition of ponderosity in dead bodies, comparing them usually unto blocks and stones, whensoever they lift or carry them; this accessional preponderancy is rather in appearance than reality.
1672, Sir Thomas Browne, Pseudodoxia EpidemicaBut we mean whensoever her majesty or any other patron do present any person unto a benefice, that the person presented shall be tried and examined by the judgment of learned men of the church; […]
1840, Lewis Rose, chapter I, in An Humble Attempt to Put an End to the Present Divisions in the Church of Scotland, and to Promote Her Usefulness. […] , Glasgow: George Gallie, →OCLC, page 8
Origin
- Middle Englishquen-so-ever
- Englishwhensoever
From Middle English quen-so-ever, wensoever, whanne so evere, whan-so-ever, whan-so-evere, whenne-soever, when so evyr. By surface analysis, when + so + ever.
More words from Middle English
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
whensoever. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/whensoever
“whensoever.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/whensoever. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “whensoever,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/whensoever.
Source: whensoever on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.