Etymology From Middle English which, hwic, wilche, hwilch, whilk, hwilc, from Old English hwelċ (“which”), from Proto-Germanic *hwilīkaz (“what kind”, literally “like what”), derived from *hwaz. 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”).
Relative Designates the one(s) previously mentioned.
Formal outside certain phrases
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.1860, Alfred Henry Forrester, Fairy footsteps, or, Lessons from legends, with illustr., by Alfred Crowquill, page 166 (Google Books view)
Whitaker’s blog post, housed on a website called Minutes Before Six, goes on to make references to Albert Camus’ 1947 classic, The Plague, dips into a Camus-inspired existential ramble and returns to an attempt to convey the detail of Prieto’s being essentially “noble,” which fact, he admits, will be lost in translation to anyone unfamiliar with death row units.2015 January 21, Texas Public Radio, “Voices From Death Row: A Prisoner Writes An Ode To ‘Living Dyingly’”, in Texas Public Radio:
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All the phones come in plastic bodies that have been given a brushed-metal finish and carry 64-bit processors from Intel, which fact they proudly announce with an Intel Inside logo on the back.2015 May 2, Adarsh Matham, “Battle of the Smartphones”, in The New Indian Express:
He once owned a painting of the house, which painting would later be stolen.
She only speaks Chinese, which language I can hardly follow.
For several seconds he sat in silence, during which time the tea and sandwiches arrived.
which
pron
Etymology From Middle English which, hwic, wilche, hwilch, whilk, hwilc, from Old English hwelċ (“which”), from Proto-Germanic *hwilīkaz (“what kind”, literally “like what”), derived from *hwaz. 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”).
Interrogative What one or ones (of those mentioned or implied).
Which is which?
By now, you must surely know which is which.
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Which is bigger, the red one or the blue one?
I'm unable to determine which is bigger.
Which's your spouse? -The one in trousers.
Which of these banes of modern business life is worse remains open to debate. But what is clear is that office workers are on a treadmill of pointless activity. Managers allow meetings to drag on for hours. Workers generate e-mails because it requires little effort and no thought. An entire management industry exists to spin the treadmill ever faster.2013 August 17, Schumpeter, “In praise of laziness”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8849:
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Not in common use The/Any ones that; whichever.
Please take which you please.
› In a non-restrictive relative clause…
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Relative Referring to a preceding noun.
I dropped a saucepan, which knocked over the eggs, which went all over the kitchen floor.
I found my camera, which I thought I'd lost, under the bed.
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I entered the room, at the far end of which was a small table.
Sunning himself on the board steps, I saw for the first time Mr. Farquhar Fenelon Cooke.[…]A silver snaffle on a heavy leather watch guard which connected the pockets of his corduroy waistcoat, together with a huge gold stirrup in his Ascot tie, sufficiently proclaimed his tastes.1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter II, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:
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.1913, Mrs. [Marie] Belloc Lowndes, chapter II, in The Lodger, London: Methuen, →OCLC; republished in Novels of Mystery: The Lodger; The Story of Ivy; What Really Happened, New York, N.Y.: Longmans, Green and Co., […], [1933], →OCLC, page 0091:
Many genes with reproductive roles also have antibacterial and immune functions, which indicate that the threat of microbial attack on the sperm or egg may be a major influence on rapid evolution during reproduction.2013 May-June, Katrina G. Claw, “Rapid Evolution in Eggs and Sperm”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3:
› In a non-restrictive relative clause… › Referring to a preceding noun.
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Archaic, Relative Used of people (now generally who, whom, that; which remains possible with words also referred to by it such as baby, child).
She had a young child, which cried incessantly.
› In a non-restrictive relative clause…
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Relative Referring to a preceding statement.
The front door was open, which concerned me.
He had to leave, which was very difficult.
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She saved my life, for which I am eternally grateful.
Plastics are energy-rich substances, which is why many of them burn so readily.2013 July 20, “Welcome to the plastisphere”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8845:
The structure's exterior is clad in aluminum-oxidized pine, which gives it a reflective quality that complements the galvanized-steel roof.2026 May 23, Julie Belcove, “Farm Fresh”, in Architectural Digest, volume 83, number 4, page 93:
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Proscribed, Relative, Sometimes In a restrictive relative clause, referring to a noun previously mentioned.
This is the letter which I received.
This is the letter in which he explains his decision.
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Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us...1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Luke 1:1:
The men which acompanyed him on his waye stode amased, for they herde a voyce, butt sawe no man.1526, [William Tyndale, transl.], The Newe Testamẽt […] (Tyndale Bible), [Worms, Germany: Peter Schöffer], →OCLC, Acts:
Etymology From Middle English which, hwic, wilche, hwilch, whilk, hwilc, from Old English hwelċ (“which”), from Proto-Germanic *hwilīkaz (“what kind”, literally “like what”), derived from *hwaz. 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”).
We didn’t find any strips of skin. Which, by the way, ughhh!2002 October 8, Jane Espenson, “Same Time, Same Place”, in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, season 7, episode 3, spoken by Xander Harris (Nicholas Brendon), Los Angeles, Calif.: UPN:
Scientists have discovered the bones of a three-foot-tall, 15-pound parrot that lived some 16 million years ago. The remains had initially been misidentified as those of an “enormous, possibly human-eating eagle,” which … yikes.2019 August 9, Oliver Roeder, “Significant Digits For Friday, Aug. 9, 2019”, in FiveThirtyEight, New York, N.Y.: ABC News, →OCLC, archived from the original on 10 Aug 2019:
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“Just leave them under the seat, okay,” she says, knowing that in all likelihood I won’t be able to leave this party. This house. This neighborhood. That it’s possible I won’t even open the driver’s side door. Yet she’s doing this anyway. Which, maybe that’s her point.2020 September 22, Justin A. Reynolds, chapter 92, in Early Departures, New York, N.Y.: Katherine Tegen Books, →ISBN:
So clearly, any list of college basketball’s best big men will have a wide variety of body types and a wider variety of skill sets. Which, cool.2020 November 19, Brendan Marks, “College basketball’s top 20 bigs for the 2020-21 season”, in The Athletic, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 28 Jul 2024:
Nate’s brother gestures toward me as though I’m a piece of trash he passed on the street—which, okay, valid.2026 January 20, Erik J. Brown, chapter 5, in Better the Devil, New York, N.Y.: Storytide, →ISBN:
They only offered me five dollars, which I wouldn’t do it for less than fifteen.