different between which vs wha

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

Interjection

wha

1. Pronunciation spelling of what.

   Wha? Speak up, I can't hear you!

Anagrams

• Haw, Haw., Wah, haw, wah

Dogrib

Noun

wha

1. marten

Scots

Alternative forms

• fa (Doric)
• whae (Southern Scots)

Etymology

From Middle English wha, from Old English hw?, from Proto-Germanic *hwaz. See English who.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /???/

Pronoun

wha

1. who