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whole
[ hohl ]
adjective
- comprising the full quantity, amount, extent, number, etc., without diminution or exception; entire, full, or total:
He ate the whole pie. They ran the whole distance.
Synonyms: , ,
Antonyms:
- containing all the elements properly belonging; complete:
We have a whole set of antique china.
- undivided; in one piece:
to swallow a thing whole.
- Mathematics. integral, or not fractional.
- not broken, damaged, or impaired; intact:
Thankfully, the vase arrived whole.
Synonyms: ,
- uninjured or unharmed; sound:
He was surprised to find himself whole after the crash.
- pertaining to all aspects of human nature, especially one's physical, intellectual, and spiritual development:
education for the whole person.
noun
- the whole assemblage of parts or elements belonging to a thing; the entire quantity, account, extent, or number:
He accepted some of the parts but rejected the whole.
Synonyms: ,
Antonyms:
- a thing complete in itself, or comprising all its parts or elements.
- an assemblage of parts associated or viewed together as one thing; a unitary system.
whole
/ əʊ /
adjective
- containing all the component parts necessary to form a total; complete
a whole apple
- constituting the full quantity, extent, etc
- uninjured or undamaged
- healthy
- having no fractional or decimal part; integral
a whole number
- of, relating to, or designating a relationship established by descent from the same parents; full
whole brothers
- out of whole cloth informal.entirely without a factual basis
adverb
- in an undivided or unbroken piece
to swallow a plum whole
noun
- all the parts, elements, etc, of a thing
- an assemblage of parts viewed together as a unit
- a thing complete in itself
- as a wholeconsidered altogether; completely
- on the whole
- taking all things into consideration
- in general
Derived Forms
- ˈɳDZԱ, noun
Other Word Forms
- ɳDZ·Ա noun
- self-whole adjective
Word History and Origins
Word History and Origins
Origin of whole1
Idioms and Phrases
- as a whole, all things included or considered; altogether:
As a whole, the relocation seems to have been beneficial.
- on / upon the whole,
- in view of all the circumstances; after consideration:
There were upsides and downsides, but on the whole I thought it best to make the trip now rather than later.
- disregarding exceptions; in general:
On the whole, the neighborhood is improving.
- out of whole cloth, without foundation in fact; fictitious:
a story made out of whole cloth.
More idioms and phrases containing whole
- as a whole
- go whole hog
- on the whole
- out of whole cloth
Synonym Study
Example Sentences
According to a 2020 Kurdistan parliamentary report, thousands have been forced off their land and whole villages have been emptied out by the conflict.
It was a whole different perspective to see the talent and creativity from the other side of the table.
"Cancel the church, cancel the registry office, basically cancel the whole wedding plans," she said.
Mothers, fathers and whole families are figures on a chessboard, disposable.
However, she wrote, "this then triggered a whole series of correspondence, the outcome of which, is that no one seems to know who is responsible for the shipwreck," said the coroner.
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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