different between shrug vs whatever

English

Etymology

From Middle English schruggen, shrukken, probably of North Germanic origin related to Danish skrugge, skrukke (“to stoop; crouch”), Swedish skruga, skrukka (“to huddle; crouch”). Compare also Old English scrincan (“to shrink”). More at shrink.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /????/
• Rhymes: -??

Noun

shrug (plural shrugs)

1. A lifting of the shoulders to signal indifference or a casual lack of knowledge.

   He dismissed my comment with a shrug.

2. A cropped, cardigan-like garment with short or long sleeves, typically knitted.

Translations

Verb

shrug (third-person singular simple present shrugs, present participle shrugging, simple past and past participle shrugged)

1. (transitive, intransitive) To raise (the shoulders) to express uncertainty, lack of concern, (formerly) dread, etc.

   I asked him for an answer and he just shrugged.

   When he saw the problem, he just shrugged and started fixing it.

   • He […] shrugs his shoulders when you talk of securities.

Translations

See also

• ¯\_(?)_/¯

Anagrams

• Rughs

English

Etymology

what +? -ever

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /??t??v?/, /w?t??v?/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /w?t??v?/, /w????v?/
• Rhymes: -?v?(r)

Unusually, the /t/ in whatever may be flapped in certain dialects, despite preceding a stressed syllable.

Determiner

whatever

1. no matter what; for any

2. (relative) Anything that.

Derived terms

• whateverism
• whateverness
• whatsoever

Related terms

• whatever creams your twinkie
• whatever floats your boat
• whatever it takes

Translations

Pronoun

whatever

1. No matter what; for any

2. (relative) Anything; sometimes used to indicate that the speaker does not care about options.

Translations

Interjection

whatever

2. (colloquial, dismissive) A holophrastic expression used discourteously to indicate that the speaker does not consider the matter worthy of further discussion.

Usage notes

• Tone of voice is particularly important here in playing up or playing down the dismissive quality of the word.

Synonyms

• so what
• whoopee do
• meh
• whatev

Translations

Adjective

whatever (comparative more whatever, superlative most whatever)

1. (colloquial) Unexceptional or unimportant; blah.
2. (dated, postpositive) At all, absolutely, whatsoever.
   • 1864, Charles Piazzi Smyth, Our Inheritance in the Great Pyramid (page 207)

     So then arose the horrible confusion perpetuated ever since, of perversely different kinds of weights, jostling each other in Britain; Troy weight and Avoirdupois weight and Apothecaries' weight, wherein or whereamongst every one is at sea with regard to testing them, and no one whatever is satisfied.

Noun

whatever (plural whatevers)

1. (colloquial) Something whose exact kind or nature is unimportant; a thingy.
   • 2003, David Soubly, Santa, CEO (page 91)

     How would you feel if you're a plant elf, and your daily bonus is tied to the number of whatevers you produce, and then this big clumsy thing barges in and knocks your rate back for the whole week?

Related terms

References

• whatever at OneLook Dictionary Search

Anagrams

• everwhat