Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary

1 N‑COUNT If you describe a lie as a whopper , you mean that it is very far from the truth. [INFORMAL ] □  …the biggest whopper the president told.

2 N‑COUNT If you refer to something as a whopper , you mean that it is an unusually large example of the thing mentioned. [INFORMAL ] □  As comets go, it is a whopper.

whop|ping / ^h wɒ p I ŋ/ ADJ [ADJ n] If you describe an amount as whopping , you are emphasizing that it is large. [INFORMAL , EMPHASIS ] □  The Russian leader won a whopping 89.9 percent 'yes' vote.

whore /hɔː ^r / (whores ) N‑COUNT A whore is the same as a prostitute .

who're /huː ə ^r , huːə ^r / Who're is a spoken form of 'who are'. □  I've got loads of friends who're unemployed. □  Who're you going to the pictures with?

whore|house /hɔː ^r haʊs/ (whorehouses ) N‑COUNT A whorehouse is the same as a brothel .

whorl / ^h wɜː ^r l, [AM ] ^h wɔː ^r l/ (whorls ) N‑COUNT A whorl is a spiral shape, for example the pattern on the tips of your fingers. [LITERARY ] □  He stared at the whorls and lines of her fingertips. □  …dense whorls of red-purple flowers.

who's /huː z, huːz/ Who's is the usual spoken form of 'who is' or 'who has', especially when 'has' is an auxiliary verb. USAGE who's

Who is and who has are sometimes contracted and pronounced /hu:z/. When you write down what someone says, you can write ‘who is’ or ‘who has’ as who’s . Don’t write them as ‘whose’. □  ‘Edward drove me here.’—‘Who’s Edward?’ □  …an American author who’s moved to London.

whose ◆◆◆ /huːz/

1 PRON You use whose at the beginning of a relative clause where you mention something that belongs to or is associated with the person or thing mentioned in the previous clause. □  I saw a man shouting at a driver whose car was blocking the street. □  …a speedboat, whose fifteen-strong crew claimed to belong to the Italian navy. □  …tourists whose vacations included an unexpected adventure.

2 PRON ; DET You use whose in questions to ask about the person or thing that something belongs to or is associated with. □  Whose was the better performance? □  'Whose is this?'—'It's mine.' □  'It wasn't your fault, John.'—'Whose, then?' □  Whose car were they in?

3 DET You use whose after certain words, especially verbs and adjectives, to introduce a clause where you talk about the person or thing that something belongs to or is associated with. □  I'm wondering whose mother she is then. □  I can't remember whose idea it was for us to meet again. ● CONJ Whose is also a conjunction. □  I wondered whose the coat was. □  That kind of person likes to spend money, it doesn't matter whose it is.

who|so|ever /huː soʊe və ^r / CONJ Whosoever means the same as whoever . [LITERARY , OLD-FASHIONED ] □  They can transfer or share the contract with whosoever they choose.

who've /huː v/ Who've is the usual spoken form of 'who have,' especially when 'have' is an auxiliary verb.

why ◆◆◆ / ^h wa I /

1 ADV You use why in questions when you ask about the reasons for something. □  Why hasn't he brought the bill? □  Why didn't he stop me? □  'I just want to see him.'—'Why?' □  Why should I leave?