where
(hwâr, wâr)
[Middle English, from Old English hwǣr.]
adverb
- At or in what place: Where is the telephone?
- In what situation or position: Where would we be without your help?
- From what place or source: Where did you get this idea?
- To what place; toward what end: Where is this argument leading?
conj.
- At what or which place: She moved to the city, where jobs are available.
- In a place in which: He lives where the climate is mild.
- In any place or situation in which; wherever: Where there's smoke, there's fire.
- To a place in which: We should go where it is quieter.
- To a place or situation in which: They will go where they are happy.
noun
- The place or occasion: We know the when but not the where of it.
- What place, source, or cause: Where are you from?
usage note
Usage Note: When where is used to refer to a point of origin, the preposition from is required: Where did she come from? From where I sit, the situation looks bleak. When it is used to refer to a destination, the preposition to is generally superfluous: Where is she going (rather than Where is she going to )? The place where they are going is beautiful. . When it is used to refer to the location of a person, event, or structure, the use of at is widely regarded as regional or colloquial: Where is the station (not Where is the station at )? Where he is, he has no access to a good library. See Usage Note at: why
