What does whoever mean?
Whoever is a relative pronoun used to refer to any person without identifying that person. It introduces a subordinate clause, as in “Whoever broke the cup should replace it,” and can be used in a more general sense meaning any person at all or no matter which person. This broad meaning is especially clear in expressions such as “whoever said so” or “whoever you are.” The word functions as the subject of its clause and normally follows standard subject-verb agreement, although expressions in informal use can vary. Compared with the more explicit “anyone who,” whoever often places slightly greater emphasis on the irrelevance of the person's identity. It is distinct from whomever, which is an objective form, and from whatever, which refers to things or matters rather than people. Whoever is useful wherever a speaker wants to generalize about people while avoiding unnecessary details about who they are.
relative pronounWhoever means any person who, with no restriction on identity. It can also mean any person at all or no matter which person.
- Any person who performs the action or satisfies the condition expressed in the clause.
- Any person at all or no matter which person, often used independently or in a fixed expression.
"Whoever left the window open should close it before leaving."
"Whoever arrives first can start the meeting."
"You can give the prize to whoever you think deserves it."
English once had the grander 'whosoever'; today, 'whoever' does the job.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does whoever come from?
Whoever developed from the Middle English compound whosoever, which ultimately combined Old English elements meaning “who,” “so,” and an interrogative particle with the sense “whether.” The historical form was more closely equivalent to “whoever” or “no matter who,” combining the ideas of “who” and “whether.” Modern English eventually separated the expression into two words, while whosoever and whoso survive as literary or archaic forms.
How whoever is actually used
The word is neutral in register and common in both formal and informal English. It is especially useful when the identity of a person is irrelevant or deliberately unspecified.
Easily confused with whoever
Whoever normally serves as the subject of a subordinate clause, as in “Whoever called?”, whereas whomever is the objective form used after a preposition, as in “To whomever did you speak?”
Whoever refers to a person, while whatever refers to a thing, an event, or an unspecified matter.