Whichever
/wɪtʃˈɛvər/noun
Used to refer to any one or any number of the things or people mentioned.
Did you know?Its first element comes from the same old Germanic root behind words like who and what, while -ever is an Old English intensifier that later helped turn simple questions into open-ended fate-language.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*kʷo-
“Interrogative/pronominal root meaning “who? what?””
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*hwaz
“Who; which”
Old English
OE
hwilc
“Which, what sort of”
Old English
OE
æfre
“Ever, at any time”
Middle English
ME
whichever
“Any one of those which; any that may be chosen”
Modern English
EN
whichever
“Any one or any of the ones mentioned”