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Definition of how
(Entry 1 of 3)
1a : in what manner or way How did you two meet each other? How did he die? How do you know that?
b : for what reason : why How would I know if it's going to rain or not?
c : with what meaning : to what effect How are we to interpret such behavior?
d : by what name or title How art thou called?— William Shakespeare
2 : to what degree or extent How much longer do we have to wait? I don't know how old she is.
3 : in what state or condition How are you? How do you feel?
4 : at what price how a score of ewes now— Shakespeare
how about how come
: what do you say to or think of how about it, are you going?
: how does it happen that : why How come you can't go?
how
conjunctionDefinition of how (Entry 2 of 3)
1a : the way or manner in which asked how they could help the story of how the company was founded remember how they fought also : the state or condition in which reported how the patient was found by the paramedics
b : that told them how he had a situation— Charles Dickens
how
nounDefinition of how (Entry 3 of 3)
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A More Exception(al) Quiz
- Which of the following words is not a synonym for ‘a young person’?
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Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?
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Merriam-Webster unabridgedWords at Play
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Time Traveler for how
The first known use of how was before the 12th century
See more words from the same century