Emily Dickinson Lexicon

WHERE-TO, comp. [where and to.]

1. To which. Whereto we have already attained. Phil. iii.
2. To what; to what end. [Little used.]

WHERE-UP-ON', comp.

Upon which. The townsmen mutinied and sent to Essex, whereupon he came thither. – Clarendon.

WHER-EV'ER, comp. [where and ever.]

At whatever place. He can not but love virtue, wherever it is. – Atterbury.

WHERE-WITH', comp. [where and with.]

1. With which. The love wherewith thou hast loved me. John xvii.
2. With what, interrogatively. Wherewith shall I save Israel? Judges vi.

WHERE-WITH-AL', adv. [See Withal.]

[where, with, and all.] The same as wherewith.

WHER'RET, n.

A box on the ear. [Not in use.] Beaum.

WHER'RET, v.t. [G. wirren. Qu.]

To hurry; to trouble; to tease; to give a box on the ear. [Low and not used in America.]

WHER'RY, n. [a different orthography of ferry, formed with a strong breathing; like whistle, from the root of L. fistula.]

1. A boat used on rivers. The name is given to several kinds of light boats. It is also applied to some decked vessels used in fishing, in different parts of Great Britain and Ireland. – Mar. Dict.
2. A liquor made from the pulp of crabs after the verjuice is expressed; sometimes called crab-wherry. [Local.]

WHET, n.

1. The act of sharpening by friction.
2. Something that provokes or stimulates the appetite; as, sips, drams and whets. – Spectator.

WHET, v.t. [pret. and pp. whetted or whet. Sax. hwettan; Sw. hvässa; Dan. hvas, sharp; hvedser, to whet; D. wetten; G. wetzen.]

1. To rub for the purpose of sharpening, as an edge tool; to sharpen by attrition; as, to whet a sythe or an ax.
2. To provoke; to excite; to stimulate; as, to whet the appetite.
3. To provoke; to make angry or acrimonious. Since Cassius first did whet me against Cesar, / I have not slept. – Shak. To whet on, or whet forward, to urge on; to instigate. – Shak. [Not used nor proper.]

WHETH'ER, pron. [or substitute; Sax. hwæther. This word seems to be connected with what and the L. uter, the latter not being aspirated. The sense seems to be what, or which of two, referring either to persons or to sentences.]

Which of two. Whether of them twain did the will of his father? Matth. xxi. Here whether is a substitute for one of two, and signifies which; which of the two; but in this sense it is obsolete. Which of two alternatives, expressed by a sentence or the clause of a sentence, and followed by or. "Resolve whether you will go or not;" that is, you will go or not go; resolve which. Note. In the latter use, which is now most common, whether is called an adverb. This is a mistake. It is the same part of speech as in the former example. The only difference is that in the former example it represents or refers to a noun, and in the latter to a sentence or clause.

WHET'STONE, n. [whet and stone.]

A stone used for sharpening edged instruments by friction.

WHET'STONE-SLATE, or WHET'-SLATE, n.

Novaculite or coticular shist, a variety of slate used for sharpening instruments of iron. The light green colored variety from the Levant is the most valuable. It should be kept in a damp place, that it may not become too dry and hard.

WHET'TED, pp.

Rubbed for sharpening; sharpened; provoked; stimulated.

WHET'TER, n.

He or that which whets or sharpens.

WHET'TING, ppr.

Rubbing for the purpose of making sharp; sharpening; provoking; inciting; stimulating.

WHEW'ER, n.

Another name of the widgeon. [Local.]

WHEY, n. [Sax. hwæg; D. wei or hui.]

The serum or watery part of milk, separated from the more thick or coagulable part, particularly in the process of making cheese. In this process, the thick part is called curd, and the thin part whey.

WHEY'EY, a.

Partaking of whey; resembling whey.

WHEY'ISH, a.

Having the qualities of whey. – Philips.

WHEY'-TUB, n.

A tub in which whey stands for yielding cream, &c. – Cyc.

WHICH, pron. [If this is from the Saxon hwilc or hwylc, it is from the Gothic kweleiks, which coincides with the Latin qualis; D. welk, G. welche, welcher, Dan. hwilken, hwilket, Sw. hwilken. This is the probable origin of the word, and its true sense is that of the Latin quis, qualis, quicunque. In these senses it occurs in all Saxon books. Its proper use was as a pronoun of interrogation, “Hwylc man is of eow?” what man is there of you? Matth. vii, 9. “Hwylc is min modor?” who is my mother? Mark iii, 33. Its use for who, Saxon hwa, as in the Lord's prayer, “Our father which art in heaven,” is an improper application of the word. In its original sense it is used for all genders; as, which man, which woman, which thing? As an interrogative we still use it in this manner. Its use for who was of long continuance, but is happily discontinued; and our present practice accords with its original use in the Saxon.]

1. A pronoun or word of interrogation, in all genders; as, which man is it? which woman was it? which is the house?
2. In reference to things, or in the neuter gender, it is a relative referring to something before mentioned; as, “God rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.” Gen. ii, 2. In some phrases, the relative may precede the noun to which it refers.
3. Which, like other pronouns, may be used as a substitute for another word or for a sentence. “We are bound to obey all the divine commands, which we can not do without divine aid.” Here which is a substitute for obey all the divine commands. The man was said to be innocent, which he was not. Here which is a substitute for innocent.
4. That which; those which; as, take which you will. The which, by the which, &c. are obsolete.

WHICH-EV'ER, or WHICH-SO-EV'ER, pron. [which and ever or soever.]

Whether one or the other. Whichever road you take, it will conduct you to town.

WHIFF, n. [W. çwif, a whiff or puff, a hiss; çwifiaw, to whiff, and çwaf, a quick gust.]

1. A sudden expulsion of air from the mouth; a puff; as, the whiff of a smoker. And seasons his whiffs with impertinent jokes. – Pope.
2. In ichthyology, a species of Pleuronectes or flounder. – Ed. Encyc.

WHIFF, v.t.

To puff; to throw out in whiffs; to consume in whiffs.