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Etymology and origin of the English word anyhow

Confidence
Established
Formation
Compound
First attested
1637 Peter Heylyn
Ultimate origin
English any,how

Pronunciation

  • US: /ˈɛn.i.haʊ/, /ˈæn.i.haʊ/[1]

Etymology

It is a compound from English any + how.[2][3][4][5] Etymonline notes that, unlike most compounds of any with an interrogative word, it is not recorded in Old or Middle English, and compares anyway, from the 16th century.[3] The Shorter Oxford notes that it was at first spelled with a space.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

In any manner, by any means: 1637, in Peter Heylyn's Antidotum Lincolniense.[2] Merriam-Webster dates this sense to 1678,[6] and Etymonline to 1740.[3]

Semantic evolution

From "in any way at all" the adverb came to mean "in any way however imperfect", and so "carelessly, haphazardly" (1678).[2][4] As a sentence adverb meaning "at any rate, in any case", like anyway, it is recorded from 1799,[2] and Etymonline notes its use as a conjunction.[3] Later uses include "nevertheless, regardless" (1867) and the conversational anyhow that closes a subject or returns to an earlier one (1911).[2] An adjective "haphazard, untidy" appeared in 1831, in a letter of Maria Edgeworth,[2] and Green records it in Warwickshire in 1896 of a disordered room.[7] The emphatic any old how is American, from 1900.[3]

Timeline

  • 1637 – in any manner, by any means.[2]
  • 1678 – in any way however imperfect; carelessly.[2][6]
  • 1799 – at any rate, in any case.[2]
  • 1831 – adjective, haphazard, untidy.[2]
  • 1846 – for emphasis at the end of a question.[2]
  • 1867 – nevertheless, regardless.[2]
  • 1900 – any old how.[3]
  • 1911 – to close a topic or return to an earlier one.[2]

Meanings

Adverb

  1. In any case; at any rate; anyway: It was raining, but we went for a walk anyhow.[8][6][2]
  2. Used to change the subject, end a conversation or return to an earlier point: Anyhow, as I was saying...[2]
  3. In any way or by any means whatever.[8][6][2]
  4. Without order or care; haphazardly: Books were piled anyhow on the shelves.[8][6][2]

Adjective

  1. (informal) Untidy or disordered.[2][7]

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  6. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  7. ^ a b Green, Jonathon (2010), Green's Dictionary of Slang, London: Chambers; digital ed. 2016–, https://greensdictofslang.com
  8. ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
Cite this entry

“Anyhow.” Etymologically, 31 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/anyhow. Accessed 31 Oct. 2026.

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