wherein English · revision 39701

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=compound|attested=c. 1230, Hali Meidenhad}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /wɛˈɹɪn/, /wɛəˈɹɪn/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[m|enm|wherin]],^(Dictionary.com 2016)^(MWU 2024) a compound of [[where]] and [[in]],^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline)^(SOED 2002) with ''where'' in the sense "in which position or circumstances".^(Etymonline) Similar compounds are [[m|nl|waarin]], [[m|de|worin]], [[m|sv|vari]] and [[m|da|hvori]].^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ As a question, in what thing, matter or respect: c1230, in the religious tract ''Hali Meidenhad''.^(OED 2026)^(HTOED) Etymonline dates the word to about 1200,^(Etymonline) Dictionary.com to 1200–50 and Merriam-Webster to the 13th century.^(Dictionary.com 2016)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ As a relative, "in which", it was used of a place, thing or piece of writing from about 1400, in ''Mandeville's Travels'',^(OED 2026)^(SOED 2002) and of a matter, fact or condition from about 1425.^(OED 2026) Etymonline finds the sense "by which, through which" by the mid-14th century.^(Etymonline) The sense "into which" is recorded from about 1400 to the late 16th century,^(OED 2026)^(SOED 2002) and the sense "during which", of time, from 1535, in Coverdale's Bible.^(OED 2026)^(HTOED) Johnson (1755) defined it simply as "In which", quoting Shakespeare's ''Henry VI'': "Wherein have you been galled by the king?"^(Johnson 1755) The word is now archaic or formal.^(SOED 2002)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c1230 – in what (matter or respect)?^(OED 2026)

+ * c1400 – in which (place, thing or writing); where.^(OED 2026)

+ * c1400 – into which (obsolete by the late 16th century).^(OED 2026)^(SOED 2002)

+ * c1425 – in which (matter or fact); in respect of which.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1535 – during which (time).^(OED 2026)

+ * 1597 – that in which, used without an antecedent.^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Adverb===

+ # (archaic or formal) In what way or [[respect]]; how: ''Wherein did I fail you?''^(Collins 2023)^(AHD 2024)^(SOED 2002)

+

+ ===Conjunction===

+ # (formal) In which place, thing or [[document]]; where: ''the house wherein the poet was born''.^(Collins 2023)^(AHD 2024)

+ # During which: ''a long winter wherein little work was done''.^(AHD 2024)^(OED 2026)

+ # In which respect; in what way: ''She showed them wherein the plan was weak.''^(AHD 2024)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[whereby]]

+ * [[wherefore]]

+ * [[whereupon]]

+ * [[therein]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}