different between which vs and

English

Alternative forms

• whiche (obsolete)
• wich (Jamaican English)

Etymology

From Middle English which, hwic, wilche, hwilch, whilk, hwilc, from Old English hwel? (“which”), from Proto-Germanic *hwil?kaz (“what kind”, literally “like what”), derived from *hwaz, equivalent to who +? like. Cognates include Scots whilk (“which”), West Frisian hokker (“which”), Dutch welk (“which”), Low German welk (“which”), German welcher (“which”), Danish hvilken (“which”), Swedish vilken (“which”), Norwegian hvilken (“which”), Icelandic hvílíkur (“which”).

Pronunciation

• enPR: w?ch, IPA^(key): /w?t??/
• (without the wine–whine merger) enPR: hw?ch, IPA^(key): /??t??/
• Rhymes: -?t?
• Homophones: witch, wich, wych (in accents with the wine-whine merger)

Determiner

which

1. (interrogative) What, of those mentioned or implied.

2. (relative) The one or ones mentioned.
   • 1860, Alfred Henry Forrester, Fairy footsteps, or, Lessons from legends, with illustr., by Alfred Crowquill, page 166 (Google Books view):

     After glaring upon the smoking philosopher, who took his misfortunes with such positive nonchalance, he growled out an oath in German, which language is particularly adapted for growling in; then, raising his hand, he dealt him a blow on his pipe, which sent it, like a rocket, into the midst of the players.

Translations

Pronoun

which

1. (interrogative) What one or ones (of those mentioned or implied).

2. (relative) Who; whom; what (of those mentioned or implied).
   • 1611, King James Version of the Bible, Luke 1:1

     Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us...

   • There was a neat hat-and-umbrella stand, and the stranger's weary feet fell soft on a good, serviceable dark-red drugget, which matched in colour the flock-paper on the walls.
3. (relative, archaic) Used of people (now generally who, whom or that).
   • 1526, William Tyndale, trans. Bible, Acts IX:

     The men which acompanyed him on his waye stode amased, for they herde a voyce, butt sawe no man.

Usage notes

• (US usage) Some authorities insist that relative which be used only in non-restrictive clauses. For restrictive clauses (e.g., The song that you just mentioned is better than the later ones), they prefer that. But Fowler, who proposed the rule, himself acknowledged that it was "not the practice of most or of the best writers". Even E. B. White, a notorious "which-hunter", wrote this: "the premature expiration of a pig is, I soon discovered, a departure which the community marks solemnly on its calendar." In modern UK usage, The song which you just mentioned is better than the later ones is generally accepted without question.
• As a relative pronoun, which (not that) is used when the relative clause is non-restrictive (e.g., "I saw Tom's car, which was parked outside his house") or when it is the object of a preposition placed in front of the pronoun (e.g., "These are the things about which we shall talk", "There were many fish, the biggest of which...").
• When which (or the other relative pronouns who and that) is used as the subject of a relative clause, the verb agrees with the antecedent of the pronoun. Thus, "the thing which is...", "the things which are...", etc.
• Which is commonly used, sometimes with partitive of, instead of who (the ordinary interrogative pronoun, in the nominative singular or plural) to refer to a person or persons, and corresponding to what of things. Compare "which of us always uses who for people" and "who among us has never used which for a person". Neither "who of us" nor "which among us" is idiomatic.

Derived terms

• whichever
• whichsoever

Related terms

• every which way
• every which where
• which is which

Translations

Noun

which (plural whiches)

1. An occurrence of the word which.
   • 1959, William Van O'Connor, Modern prose, form and style (page 251)

     The ofs and the whiches have thrown our prose into a hundred-years' sleep.

   • 1989, Donald Ervin Knuth, Tracy Larrabee, Paul M. Roberts, Mathematical writing (page 90)

     Is it not true, TLL asked of Mary-Claire, that people invariably get their whiches and thats right when they speak?

Middle English

Alternative forms

• hwic, hwilc, hwilch, whiche, whilk, whyche, wilche

Pronoun

which

1. which
   • 1407, The Testimony of William Thorpe, pages 40–41

     And I seide, “Ser, in his tyme maister Ioon Wiclef was holden of ful many men the grettis clerk that thei knewen lyuynge vpon erthe. And therwith he was named, as I gesse worthili, a passing reuli man and an innocent in al his lyuynge. And herfore grete men of kunnynge and other also drowen myche to him, and comownede ofte with him. And thei sauouriden so his loore that thei wroten it bisili and enforsiden hem to rulen hem theraftir… Maister Ion Aston taughte and wroot acordingli and ful bisili, where and whanne and to whom he myghte, and he vsid it himsilf, I gesse, right perfyghtli vnto his lyues eende. Also Filip of Repintoun whilis he was a chanoun of Leycetre, Nycol Herforde, dane Geffrey of Pikeringe, monke of Biland and a maistir dyuynyte, and Ioon Purueye, and manye other whiche weren holden rightwise men and prudent, taughten and wroten bisili this forseide lore of Wiclef, and conformeden hem therto. And with alle these men I was ofte homli and I comownede with hem long tyme and fele, and so bifore alle othir men I chees wilfulli to be enformed bi hem and of hem, and speciali of Wiclef himsilf, as of the moost vertuous and goodlich wise man that I herde of owhere either knew. And herfore of Wicleef speciali and of these men I toke the lore whiche I haue taughte and purpose to lyue aftir, if God wole, to my lyues ende.”

References

• “which” listed in the Middle English Dictionary [2001]

English

Pronunciation

• (stressed) enPR: ?nd, ?nd IPA^(key): /ænd/, /?nd/
• Rhymes: -ænd, -?nd
• (unstressed) enPR: ?n(d) IPA^(key): /?nd/, /?n/, /?n/, /?nd/, /n?d/, /n?/
• (unstressed or, for some speakers, stressed) Homophone: end

Etymology 1

From Middle English and, an, from Old English and, ond, end, from Proto-Germanic *andi, *anþi, from Proto-Indo-European *h?énti (“facing opposite, near, in front of, before”). Cognate with Scots an (“and”), North Frisian en (“and”), West Frisian en, in (“and”), Low German un (“and”), Dutch en (“and”), German und (“and”), Danish end (“but”), Swedish än (“yet, but”), Icelandic enn (“still, yet”), Albanian edhe (“and”) (dialectal ênde, ênne), ende (“still, yet, therefore”), Latin ante (“opposite, in front of”), and Ancient Greek ???? (antí, “opposite, facing”).

Alternative forms

• an'
• 'n' (n)

Conjunction

and

1. As a coordinating conjunction; expressing two elements to be taken together or in addition to each other.
   1. Used simply to connect two noun phrases, adjectives or adverbs. [from 8^th c.]
      • c. 1430 (reprinted 1888), Thomas Austin, ed., Two Fifteenth-century Cookery-books. Harleian ms. 279 (ab. 1430), & Harl. ms. 4016 (ab. 1450), with Extracts from Ashmole ms. 1429, Laud ms. 553, & Douce ms. 55 [Early English Text Society, Original Series; 91], London: N. Trübner & Co. for the Early English Text Society, volume I, OCLC 374760, page 11:

        Soupes dorye. — Take gode almaunde mylke […] caste þher-to Safroun an Salt […]

      • 1596-97, William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice, Act V Scene 1

        Sweet lady, you have given me life and living; […]

      • In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

      • 1817, Jane Austen, Persuasion:

        as for Mrs. Smith, she had claims of various kinds to recommend her quickly and permanently.

      • 2011, Mark Townsend, The Guardian, 5 November:

        ‘The UKBA has some serious explaining to do if it is routinely carrying out such abusive and unlawful inspections.’

   2. Simply connecting two clauses or sentences. [from 8^th c.]
      • 1991, Jung Chang, Wild Swans:

        When she saw several boys carrying a huge wooden case full of porcelain, she mumbled to Jinming that she was going to have a look, and left the room.

      • 2011, Helena Smith & Tom Kington, The Guardian, 5 November:

        "Consensus is essential for the country," he said, adding that he was not "tied" to his post and was willing to step aside.

   3. Introducing a clause or sentence which follows on in time or consequence from the first. [from 9^th c.]
      • 1996, David Beasley, Chocolate for the Poor:

        ‘But if you think you can get it, Christian, you're a fool. Set one foot upcountry and I'll kill you.’

      • 2004, Will Buckley, The Observer:, 22 August:

        One more error and all the good work she had done on Friday would be for nought.

   4. (obsolete) Yet; but. [10^th-17^th c.]
      • 1611, Authorised (King James) Version, Bible, Matthew XXII:

        Hee said, I goe sir, and went not.

   5. Used to connect certain numbers: connecting units when they precede tens (not dated); connecting tens and units to hundreds, thousands etc. (now often omitted in US); to connect fractions to wholes. [from 10^th c.]
      • 1956, Dodie Smith, (title):

        The One Hundred and One Dalmatians.

   6. (now colloquial or literary) Used to connect more than two elements together in a chain, sometimes to stress the number of elements.
      • 1623, William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar, First Folio, II.2:

        And these does she apply, for warnings and portents, / And euils imminent; and on her knee / Hath begg'd, that I will stay at home to day.

      • 1939, Langley, Ryerson & Woolf, The Wizard of Oz (screenplay):

        Lions, and tigers, and bears! Oh, my!

   7. Connecting two identical elements, with implications of continued or infinite repetition. [from 10^th c.]
      • 1611, Authorised (King James) Version, Bible, Psalms CXLV:

        I will extol thee, my God, O king; and I will bless thy name for ever and ever.

      • 2011, Jonathan Watts, The Guardian, 18 March:

        He was at work in a nearby city when the tsunami struck. ‘As soon as I saw it, I called home. It rang and rang, but there was no answer.’

   8. Introducing a parenthetical or explanatory clause. [from 10^th c.]
      • 1918, George W. E. Russell, Prime Ministers and Some Others:

        The word "capable" occurs in Mr. Fisher's Bill, and rightly, because our mental and physical capacities are infinitely varied.

      • 2008, The Guardian, 29 Jan 2008:

        President Pervez Musharraf is undoubtedly sincere in his belief that he, and he alone, can save Pakistan from the twin perils of terrorism and anarchy.

   9. Introducing the continuation of narration from a previous understood point; also used alone as a question: ‘and so what?’.
      • 1611, Authorised (King James) Version, Bible, Revelation XIV:

        And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps […].

      • 1861, Charles Dickens, Great Expectations:

        ‘You take it smoothly now,’ said I, ‘but you were very serious last night, when you swore it was Death.’ ‘And so I swear it is Death,’ said he, putting his pipe back in his mouth […].

      • 1914, Saki, ‘The Lull’, Beasts and Superbeasts:

        ‘And, Vera,’ added Mrs. Durmot, turning to her sixteen-year-old niece, ‘be careful what colour ribbon you wear in your hair […].’

   10. (now regional or somewhat colloquial) Used to connect two verbs where the second is dependent on the first: ‘to’. Used especially after come, go and try. [from 14^th c.]
       • 1817, Jane Austen, Sanditon:

         Beyond paying her a few charming compliments and amusing her with gay conversation, had he done anything at all to try and gain her affection?

       • 1989, James Kelman, A Disaffection:

         Remember and help yourself to the soup! called Gavin.

   11. Introducing a qualitative difference between things having the same name; "as well as other". [from 16^th c.]
       • 1936, The Labour Monthly, vol. XVIII:

         Undoubtedly every party makes mistakes. But there are mistakes and mistakes.

       • 1972, Esquire, vol. LXXVIII:

         "There are managers and there are managers," he tells me. "I'm totally involved in every aspect of Nina's career."

   12. Used to combine numbers in addition; plus (with singular or plural verb). [from 17^th c.]
       • 1791, James Boswell, Life of Samuel Johnson:

         ‘Nobody attempts to dispute that two and two make four: but with contests concerning moral truth, human passions are generally mixed […].’

       • 1871, Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There:

         ‘Can you do Addition?’ the White Queen asked. ‘What's one and one and one and one and one and one and one and one and one and one?’

2. (heading) Expressing a condition.
   1. (now US dialect) If; provided that. [from 13^th c.]
      • 1485, Sir Thomas Malory, Le Morte Darthur, Book VII:

        "Where ys Sir Launcelot?" seyde King Arthure. "And he were here, he wolde nat grucche to do batayle for you."

      • 1526, William Tyndale, trans. Bible, Matthew XIV:

        Peter answered, and sayde: master, and thou be he, bidde me come unto the on the water.

      • 1958, Shirley Ann Grau, The Hard Blue Sky:

        "And he went slower," Mike said softly, "he go better."

   2. (obsolete) As if, as though. [15^th-17^th c.]
      • 1600, William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream, I.2:

        I will roare you, and 'twere any Nightingale.

      • 1625, Francis Bacon, Of Innovations

        As they will set an house on fire, and it were but to roast their eggs.

3. (mathematics, logic) connecting two well formed formulas to create a well formed formula that requires the new formula to only be true when each of the two are true.

Related terms

• equal to
• false
• if
• iff
• implies
• nand
• nor
• not
• or
• true
• xor

See also

• formal logic

Quotations

• For quotations using this term, see Citations:and.

Usage notes

Synonyms

• (used to connect two similar words or phrases): as well as, together with, in addition to
• (informal): &, 'n', +
• (obsolete except in fixed phrases): et
• (in artist collaborations): x

Translations

See and/translations § Conjunction.

Noun

and (plural ands)

1. (music, often informal) In rhythm, the second half of a divided beat.

Etymology 2

From Middle English ande, from Old English anda (“grudge, enmity, malice, envy, hatred, anger, zeal, annoyance, vexation; zeal; injury, mischief; fear, horror”) and Old Norse andi (“breath, wind, spirit”); both from Proto-Germanic *anadô (“breath, anger, zeal”), from Proto-Indo-European *h?enh?- (“to breathe, blow”). Cognate with German Ahnd, And (“woe, grief”), Danish ånde (“breath”), Swedish anda, ande (“spirit, breath, wind, ingenuity, intellect”), Icelandic andi (“spirit”), Albanian ëndë (“pleasure, delight”), Latin animus (“spirit, soul”). Related to onde.

Alternative forms

• aynd, eind, eynd, yane, end

Noun

and (plural ands)

1. (Britain dialectal) Breath.
2. (Britain dialectal) Sea smoke; steam fog.

Etymology 3

From Middle English anden, from Old English andian (“to be envious or jealous, envy”) and Old Norse anda (“to breathe”); both from Proto-Germanic *anad?n? (“to breathe, sputter”). Cognate with German ahnden (“to avenge, punish”), Danish ånde (“to breathe”), Swedish andas (“to breathe”), Icelandic anda (“to breathe”). See above.

Alternative forms

• eind, eynd, ein

Verb

and (third-person singular simple present ands, present participle anding, simple past and past participle anded)

1. (Britain dialectal, intransitive) To breathe; whisper; devise; imagine.

Anagrams

• -dan, ADN, DAN, DNA, Dan, Dan., NAD, NDA, dan, dna, nad

Azerbaijani

Etymology

From Proto-Turkic *?nt (“oath”). Cognate with Old Turkic ????? (nt), Turkish ant.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [?nd]

Noun

and (definite accusative and?, plural andlar)

1. oath

Declension

Derived terms

• and içm?k (“to take an oath”)

References

Danish

Etymology

From Old Norse ?nd, from Proto-Germanic *anadz, cognate with German Ente, Dutch eend. The Germanic noun derives from Proto-Indo-European *h?énh?ts (“duck”), which is also the source of Latin anas, Ancient Greek ????? (nêtta), Lithuanian ántis, Sanskrit ??? (?tí).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [?an?]
• Rhymes: -and

Noun

and c (singular definite anden, plural indefinite ænder)

1. duck
2. canard (false or misleading report or story)

Declension

Further reading

• “and” in Den Danske Ordbog

Estonian

Etymology

From the root of andma. Cognate with Finnish anti.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?n??t/

Noun

and (genitive anni, partitive andi)

1. offering, gift
2. alms, donation
3. giftedness, talent
4. act of giving

Declension

Gothic

Romanization

and

1. Romanization of ????????????

Livonian

Alternative forms

• (Courland) andõ

Etymology

From Proto-Finnic *antadak, from Proto-Uralic *ëmta-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?nd/

Verb

and

1. (Salaca) to give

Middle English

Alternative forms

• ant, an, en
• ?, &

Etymology

From Old English and, ond, end, from Proto-Germanic *andi, from Proto-Indo-European *h?énti.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /and/
• (unstressed) IPA^(key): /an/, /?n/

Conjunction

and

1. and, and then (connects two elements of a sentence)

2. however, yet, but, though. while
3. if, supposing that, whether.
4. (rare) As though, like, in a manner suggesting.

Descendants

• English: and
• Scots: an

References

• “and, conj. (& adv.).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2019-01-14.

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From Old Norse ?nd, from Proto-Germanic *anadz, from Proto-Indo-European *h?enh?-ti- (“duck”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?n?/, /?nd/

Noun

and f or m (definite singular anda or anden, indefinite plural ender, definite plural endene)

1. a duck
2. canard (false or misleading report or story)

Derived terms

• Andeby (“Duckburg”)
• andunge

References

• “and” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?n?/, /?nd/

Etymology 1

From Old Norse ?nd, from Proto-Germanic *anadz, from Proto-Indo-European *h?enh?-ti- (“duck”). Akin to English ennet.

Noun

and f (definite singular anda, indefinite plural ender, definite plural endene)

1. a duck (waterbird)

Derived terms

• Andeby (“Duckburg”)
• andunge

Etymology 2

Verb

and

1. imperative of anda

References

• “and” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Old English

Alternative forms

• ond, end

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *anda, *andi, probably from Proto-Indo-European *h?énti (“facing opposite, near, in front of, before”). Compare Old Frisian and, Old Saxon endi, Old High German unti, Old Norse enn.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?nd/

Conjunction

and

1. and

Synonyms

• ? (symbol)

Descendants

• Middle English: and, ant, an, en
  • English: and
  • Scots: an

Adverb

and

1. even; also

Old Frisian

Alternative forms

• ande, ende

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *andi, from Proto-Indo-European *h?énti (“facing opposite, near, in front of, before”). Compare Old English and, Old Saxon endi, Old High German unti, Old Norse enn.

Conjunction

and

1. and

Descendants

• North Frisian: en
• Saterland Frisian: un
• West Frisian: en, in

Old Irish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /an?d/

Pronoun

and

1. third-person singular masculine/neuter dative of hi: in him, in it
   • c. 800–825, Diarmait, Milan Glosses on the Psalms, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 7–483, Ml. 31^b23

Adverb

and

1. there
   • c. 850-875, Turin Glosses and Scholia on St. Mark, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 484–94, Tur. 110c

Descendants

• Irish: ann
• Manx: ayn
• Scottish Gaelic: ann

Scots

Conjunction

and

1. Alternative form of an

Usage notes

• While and is relatively often written due to English influence, it is seldom pronounced as such, making way for an.

References

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Norse ?nd, from Proto-Germanic *anadz, from Proto-Indo-European *h?énh?t- (“duck”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /and/

Noun

and c

1. a wild duck

Declension

Related terms

See also

• anka (domesticated duck)

References

• and in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)

Anagrams

• -nad, Dan, dan

Zealandic

Etymology

From Middle Dutch hant, from Old Dutch hant, from Proto-Germanic *handuz.

Noun

and f (plural [please provide])

1. hand

Alternative forms

• 'and