whatevers

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of whatever.

   The junk drawer overflowed with batteries, rubber bands, and assorted whatevers.

   She packed socks, chargers, and a dozen other whatevers for the trip.

   Note

   Only the noun can take a plural. The determiner in "whatever you like" has no plural, so this spelling always points to the colloquial "thingy" noun. Writers reach for it to name what they cannot or will not name, as in Russell Baker's "cellular whatevers" (1993). They also use it to close a list they do not care to finish, as in Malene Arpe's "Russian singers/models/whatevers" (2009). Its -s is the ordinary plural ending, unrelated to the slangy brush-off.

2. 2
   interjectionslang

   Expresses indifference, dismissal, or reluctant acceptance of something just said.

   Whatevers, it's not like my opinion matters around here anyway.

   When I asked if she minded the change, she just shrugged and said, "Whatevers."

   Similarwhatever

   Note

   The final -s here is not a plural. It is a hypocoristic ending, the cozy suffix of nicknames and pet forms, and it softens the shrug rather than multiplying anything. Next to plain whatever, this sounds jokier and less cutting. It is slang, at home in casual talk among friends. In formal writing, or wherever a dismissal could wound, it is better left out.

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