# whenever

Pronunciation: US say "wuh-NEV-ur" /wəˈnɛvɚ/; UK say "wuh-NEV-uh" /wəˈnɛvə/

## Conjunction

1. Every time that a particular event or situation occurs.
   - Simple: Each time that something happens.
   - _Whenever the power goes out, we light candles in the kitchen._
   - _He checks his phone whenever it buzzes on the desk._
2. Introducing a clause: at whatever time the thing in that clause happens or is the case, no matter when that is.
   - Simple: At any time, no matter when it is.
   - _Feel free to call me whenever you need help with the report._
   - _You can leave whenever you're ready; nobody is keeping track._
4. When; at the time that something happens, even for a single past event. *(dialectal, Ireland, US)*
   - Simple: When something happens.
   - _Whenever my grandfather passed, the whole town came to the funeral._
   - _Whenever I graduated, I moved straight to the city._

## Adverb

3. At any time at all, with no fixed or specified moment.
   - Simple: At any time at all.
   - _Stop by whenever; the door is always open._
   - _There's no deadline, so submit the form whenever._
5. An emphatic version of 'when,' used in questions to convey surprise or impatience.
   - Simple: A stronger way of asking 'when,' used to show surprise or impatience.
   - _Whenever did you find the time to read all these books?_
   - _Whenever are they going to fix that broken streetlight?_

## Origin

It goes back to Middle English whan evere, also written whanne ever, whener or when ever, which amounts to "when" plus "ever".

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/whenever (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).