Today’s word of the day is: Whatever
Whatever is a word that can be used in a wide range of contexts, and can be both extremely rude and extremely polite. It’s just that meaningful!
We’ll start with the nicest of versions: whatever as a polite word.
- A buffet at a restaurant offers unlimited food. This means the waiter will tell you:
“You can eat whatever you want.”
- If you and your friends are going to a party and you’re unsure about what to wear, just ask. They respond saying it is informal, so:
“You can wear whatever you want”.
- If your boss calls you for a favor, you can respond by saying you are completely at his/her disposal:
“I’ll do whatever you need.”
But the word doesn’t stop there, that’s for sure. If you want to show that you really don’t care about something (rude/unpolite), whatever is the perfect single word to describe your mood.
Exhibit A:
Emma: Johnny, there’s a coffee stain on your shirt!
Johnny: Whatever. (Read: I don’t care, can we talk about something else?)
Exhibit B:
Chris: See that whale over there? That is one big animal!
Eric: Actually, it’s a mammal.
Chris: Whatever. (Read: Don’t judge me!)
Exhibit C:
Liz: I didn’t learn to ride a bike until I was eleven!
Mom: Actually, you were twelve.
Liz: Whatever. (Read: That’s not the point, I was old!)
I think this GIF explains the “rude” version of whatever quite well, taken from the “Gif-able” tumbler and a clip from movie Clueless:
So what do you readers think? Is it a word you have ever used before? If it isn’t, beware: it’s not the nicest word to use in certain contexts!
