Whatever in Different Languages
Discover 'Whatever' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'whatever' is a versatile and intriguing part of many languages, used to express indifference, dismissal, or as an intensifier. Its cultural importance is undeniable, often used in popular music, movies, and literature to convey a carefree attitude or resignation.
Did you know that 'whatever' has been adopted into other languages, such as 'quoi que ce soit' in French or 'was auch immer' in German? This adaptability showcases the word's significance and influence in global culture.
Understanding the translation of 'whatever' in different languages can help bridge communication gaps and deepen cultural appreciation. For instance, in Spanish, 'cualquier cosa' captures the essence of 'whatever', while in Japanese, 'なんでも' (nandemo) conveys a similar meaning.
Explore the many faces of 'whatever' and discover how this simple word connects us all. Here's a list of translations to get you started:
Whatever
Whatever in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | wat ook al | ||
| "Wat ook al" is a contraction of "wat ook" ("whatever") and "al" ("already"), and is typically used in a context where the speaker is already familiar with the subject. | |||
| Amharic | ምንአገባኝ | ||
| The word ምንአገባኝ (mənaggəbaɲɲ) in Amharic can also mean "all the same" or "nevertheless". | |||
| Hausa | komai | ||
| The word "komai" in Hausa also means "anything", "at all", or "something", depending on the context. | |||
| Igbo | ihe obula | ||
| Igbo people are often using the phrase 'Ihe obula' which mean any type of thing (good or bad) | |||
| Malagasy | na inona na inona | ||
| The phrase "na inona na inona" literally translates to "it's whatever it is." | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | mulimonse | ||
| The word "mulimonse" is derived from the morphemes "muli" (all) and "-onse" (every), meaning "everything" or "every kind." | |||
| Shona | chero | ||
| The word "chero" in Shona can also refer to "the act of doing something". Example: "Ndinoita chero", meaning "I am doing something", "I am busy", or "I am working." | |||
| Somali | wax kastoo | ||
| In Southern Somali, 'wax kastoo' can also mean 'everyone.' | |||
| Sesotho | eng kapa eng | ||
| "Eng kapa eng" can also mean "every time" or "every which way" in Sesotho. | |||
| Swahili | vyovyote | ||
| Vyovyote commonly appears at the start of a statement to imply a lack of enthusiasm or resignation. | |||
| Xhosa | noba yintoni | ||
| The word "noba yintoni" can also be used to express indifference or dismissiveness. | |||
| Yoruba | ohunkohun ti | ||
| Ohunkohun ti may have originally meant something else, perhaps "the things of the earth" or "earthly possessions." | |||
| Zulu | noma yini | ||
| The phrase "noma yini" can also carry meanings of defiance or indifference when uttered with appropriate tone of voice and body language. | |||
| Bambara | fɛn o fɛn | ||
| Ewe | esi wònye ko | ||
| Kinyarwanda | icyaricyo cyose | ||
| Lingala | nyonso | ||
| Luganda | -nna -nna | ||
| Sepedi | eng le eng | ||
| Twi (Akan) | ebiara | ||
Whatever in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | ايا كان | ||
| The Arabic word "ايا كان" (ʾayya kāna) is cognate with the Hebrew word "איכה" (ʾēkā) meaning "how," "in what way," and was originally used in Arabic as an interrogative phrase. | |||
| Hebrew | מה שתגיד | ||
| "מה שתגיד" also means "that's what you say" and "how about you" | |||
| Pashto | هر څه چې | ||
| The word "هر څه چې" in Pashto can also mean "each" or "every". | |||
| Arabic | ايا كان | ||
| The Arabic word "ايا كان" (ʾayya kāna) is cognate with the Hebrew word "איכה" (ʾēkā) meaning "how," "in what way," and was originally used in Arabic as an interrogative phrase. | |||
Whatever in Western European Languages
| Albanian | cfaredo | ||
| The word **cfaredo** is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *kʷer-*, meaning "to turn, to wind, to curve". | |||
| Basque | edozein dela ere | ||
| Though literally meaning 'what will be will be', edozein dela ere is often used to imply indifference or acceptance. | |||
| Catalan | el que sigui | ||
| The Catalan phrase "el que sigui" not only means "whatever," but it is also used to express uncertainty or indifference. | |||
| Croatian | što god | ||
| Što god in Croatian derives from "što god hoćeš" meaning "whatever you want". | |||
| Danish | uanset hvad | ||
| The word uanset hvad literally means "regardless of what" in Danish | |||
| Dutch | wat dan ook | ||
| The Dutch "wat dan ook" also means "and what else", "and what's more", and "and so on". | |||
| English | whatever | ||
| The word "whatever" can be used as a pronoun, an adjective, an adverb, or an interjection. | |||
| French | peu importe | ||
| Peu importe's 'peu' literally translates to 'little,' indicating a small amount of importance. | |||
| Frisian | wat dan ek | ||
| Derived from archaic Frisian phrase "wat de ien ek, dat de oar ek", meaning "what one has, the other has". | |||
| Galician | o que sexa | ||
| German | wie auch immer | ||
| The German word "wie auch immer" can also be used to indicate "how", "by whatever means" or "in any event." | |||
| Icelandic | hvað sem er | ||
| The Icelandic word "hvað sem er" can also mean "anything" or "everything". | |||
| Irish | cibé | ||
| In the Irish language, "cibé" is also used as a way of agreeing with someone enthusiastically, akin to the English "sure" or "of course". | |||
| Italian | qualunque cosa | ||
| "Qualunque cosa" (lit. any thing) dates back to the Latin phrase "quale un que," which literally means "such a thing which." | |||
| Luxembourgish | wat och ëmmer | ||
| Maltese | mhux xorta | ||
| Norwegian | samme det | ||
| The phrase "samme det" is actually two words, "samme" meaning "same" and "det" meaning "it". | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | tanto faz | ||
| In Portuguese, "tanto faz" can also mean "the same thing" or "it doesn't matter". | |||
| Scots Gaelic | ge bith dè | ||
| The term 'ge bith dè' is Gaelic for 'whatever' and literally means 'what will be' or 'whatever may come'. | |||
| Spanish | lo que sea | ||
| The phrase "lo que sea" literally translates to "the thing that is" or "the thing that might be," implying a broadness of possibilities. | |||
| Swedish | vad som helst | ||
| The Swedish word "vad som helst" literally translates to "what as anything," revealing its original meaning as "anything whatsoever." | |||
| Welsh | beth bynnag | ||
| "Beth bynnag" can refer to the whole of creation in addition to meaning "whatever". | |||
Whatever in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | што заўгодна | ||
| The Belarusian word "што заўгодна" literally translates to "what for anything", likely owing to its origin as a calque on the Russian "что угодно." | |||
| Bosnian | kako god | ||
| The phrase kako god is also used to express indifference or unwillingness to do something. | |||
| Bulgarian | както и да е | ||
| The phrase "както и да е" literally means "as it is", but it is often used to express a sense of resignation or indifference similar to the English word "whatever." | |||
| Czech | to je jedno | ||
| The Czech expression "To je jedno" literally translates to "that is one" and originally meant "that is the same" or "that is equal." | |||
| Estonian | mida iganes | ||
| The word "mida iganes" has been suggested to be an abbreviation of "mida te iganes tahate", meaning "whatever you want" or "whatever you like." | |||
| Finnish | aivan sama | ||
| Aivan sama translates directly to 'completely the same', implying a complete lack of any preference. | |||
| Hungarian | tök mindegy | ||
| "Tök mindegy" literally means "pumpkin is all the same". | |||
| Latvian | neatkarīgi no tā | ||
| The Latvian word "neatkarīgi no tā" has a literal meaning of "no matter what" or "regardless". | |||
| Lithuanian | nesvarbu | ||
| "Nesvarbu" is thought to derive from "nesvãrus" ("weightless", "insignificant") or, less likely, "несвербеть" ("not to itch") in Russian. | |||
| Macedonian | како и да е | ||
| "Како и да е" derives from the expression "како и да" which means "in whatever way" and has also the extended meaning "nevertheless, however, still, all the same, anyhow". | |||
| Polish | cokolwiek | ||
| The word "cokolwiek" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "kolko" meaning "how much" or "how many". | |||
| Romanian | indiferent de | ||
| The word "indiferent de" in Romanian is a calque of the French phrase "indifférent de," which means "regardless of." | |||
| Russian | без разницы | ||
| The idiom "без разницы" ("whatever") literally translates to "without difference". | |||
| Serbian | шта год | ||
| Slovak | hocičo | ||
| In Slovak, 'hocičo' can also mean 'anything', 'something', or 'whoever', depending on the context. | |||
| Slovenian | karkoli | ||
| "Karkoli" can also mean "any" or "whoever", depending on the context. | |||
| Ukrainian | що завгодно | ||
| The Ukrainian phrase "що завгодно" (pronounced "shcho zavhodno") literally translates to "what is desired" or "what you want" and can be used to express a wide range of meanings, from "anything you want" to "whatever you please." | |||
Whatever in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | যাই হোক | ||
| The Bengali word "যাই হোক" (pronounced "jai hok") is derived from the Sanskrit phrase "yathā api" meaning "in any case" or "however". It is often used to indicate indifference or resignation in everyday speech. | |||
| Gujarati | ગમે તે | ||
| "ગમે તે" is derived from "ગમે" (to like) and "તે" (it) and used in Gujarati to refer to anything or any situation. | |||
| Hindi | जो कुछ | ||
| The word "जो कुछ" also means "all that" or "everything" in Hindi, and is often used similarly to "all" or "the whole" in English. | |||
| Kannada | ಏನಾದರೂ | ||
| "ಏನಾದರೂ" can also be used as a rhetorical question or to express surprise or disappointment. | |||
| Malayalam | എന്തുതന്നെയായാലും | ||
| Marathi | जे काही | ||
| In Marathi, "जे काही" ("whatever") can also mean "one thing". | |||
| Nepali | जे सुकै होस् | ||
| Punjabi | ਜੋ ਵੀ | ||
| The full phrase ‘ਜੋ ਵੀ’ is used to say ‘whoever’ or ‘whenever’ | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | කුමක් වුවත් | ||
| Tamil | எதுவாக | ||
| எதுவாக, pronounced ethuvaaga, has alternate meanings, such as "by what means" and "for whatever reason." | |||
| Telugu | ఏదో ఒకటి | ||
| ఏదో ఒకటి is used in Telugu to express uncertainty or to substitute an unknown or unspecified thing. | |||
| Urdu | جو بھی | ||
| The word "جو بھی" (jo bhi) has similar connotations to "whichever" or "whomever" but is most often translated into English as "whatever." | |||
Whatever in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 随你 | ||
| "随你"在台湾、香港等地区也可能被用于表示"听凭你的安排"、"听你差遣"的意思 | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 隨你 | ||
| In Mandarin, the phrase “隨你” can also mean “as you wish” or “it’s up to you”. | |||
| Japanese | なんでも | ||
| なんでも (nanto demo) can also mean 'anything' or 'everything'. | |||
| Korean | 도대체 무엇이 | ||
| 도대체 무엇이 is a Korean phrase that also means "what on earth" or "what the heck". | |||
| Mongolian | юу ч байсан | ||
| The word "юу ч байсан" in Mongolian is derived from the words "юу" (what) and "байсан" (was) in the past tense, expressing the idea of "whatever it may have been". | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ဘာပဲဖြစ်ဖြစ် | ||
Whatever in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | masa bodo | ||
| Javanese | apa wae | ||
| Although the word "apa wae" is commonly translated as "whatever," in the original Javanese it is more similar to "what is it?" | |||
| Khmer | ស្អីក៏ដោយ | ||
| The word ស្អីក៏ដោយ can also be used to refer to a very large amount or a very small amount, depending on the context. | |||
| Lao | ສິ່ງໃດກໍ່ຕາມ | ||
| Malay | apa-apa sahajalah | ||
| Apa-apa sahajalah is a Malay phrase which can also mean "come what may" or "take things as they come." | |||
| Thai | อะไรก็ได้ | ||
| The Thai word "อะไรก็ได้" literally translates to "what would be good" but is used to express indifference, like an English speaker might say "anything would be fine." | |||
| Vietnamese | bất cứ điều gì | ||
| "Bất cứ điều gì" is the translation of Latin "quidquid" in a Catholic prayer in which it means "everything that". | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kahit ano | ||
Whatever in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | nə olursa olsun | ||
| "Nə olursa olsun" means "no matter what" or "come what may" in English. | |||
| Kazakh | бәрі бір | ||
| "Бәрі бір" is a homonym that can either mean "whatever" or "everyone" in Kazakh. | |||
| Kyrgyz | эмне болсо дагы | ||
| Tajik | да ман чӣ | ||
| Although 'да ман чӣ' means 'whatever' in Tajik, it also refers to a state of indifference or carelessness. | |||
| Turkmen | näme bolsa-da | ||
| Uzbek | nima bo'lsa ham | ||
| The Uzbek phrase "nima bo'lsa ham" literally means "what will be, will be". | |||
| Uyghur | قانداقلا بولمىسۇن | ||
Whatever in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | he aha | ||
| The Hawaiian phrase 'he aha' is derived from the word 'aha' which means 'to know' or 'to perceive' | |||
| Maori | ahakoa he aha | ||
| The phrase 'ahakoa he aha' (literally 'although it is anything') is often used to express a sense of indifference or resignation. | |||
| Samoan | soʻo se mea | ||
| In Samoan, the plural or generic singular is often conveyed by adding "feese" to the singular root word (the same in some other Polynesian languagues), thus the literal meaning of "soʻo se mea" ("whatever") is "any one thing". | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | kahit ano | ||
| "Kahit ano" is derived from the Tagalog words "kahi't" (although, even though) and "anó" (what), and it can also be used to express the idea of "anything at all" or "no matter what". | |||
Whatever in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | kunapasay | ||
| Guarani | taha'éva | ||
Whatever in International Languages
| Esperanto | kio ajn | ||
| The word "kio ajn" can also be used to mean "anything", "something" or "someone" | |||
| Latin | quae semper | ||
| The Latin phrase "quae semper" ("whatever") also means "who always" and "which always". | |||
Whatever in Others Languages
| Greek | οτιδήποτε | ||
| Some claim "οτιδήποτε" is an ancient Greek form of "ὅ,τι δὴ ποτ' ἂν" ("whatever"), but many reject this view. | |||
| Hmong | xijpeem | ||
| Hmong "xijpeem" can carry the dual meaning of "whatever" or "it doesn't matter."} | |||
| Kurdish | çibe jî | ||
| Turkish | her neyse | ||
| In Turkish, her neyse also means "well then" and "okay" which it borrowed from Persian. | |||
| Xhosa | noba yintoni | ||
| The word "noba yintoni" can also be used to express indifference or dismissiveness. | |||
| Yiddish | וואס א חילוק | ||
| The Yiddish idiom "וואס א חילוק" ("whatever") originates from the question "What's the difference?" suggesting indifference. | |||
| Zulu | noma yini | ||
| The phrase "noma yini" can also carry meanings of defiance or indifference when uttered with appropriate tone of voice and body language. | |||
| Assamese | যিয়েই নহওক | ||
| Aymara | kunapasay | ||
| Bhojpuri | जवन भी | ||
| Dhivehi | ކޮންމެގޮތެއްވިޔަސް | ||
| Dogri | जो बी | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kahit ano | ||
| Guarani | taha'éva | ||
| Ilocano | uray ania | ||
| Krio | ilɛk | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | هەرچیەک بێت | ||
| Maithili | जे किछु | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯑꯃ ꯍꯦꯛꯇ ꯑꯣꯏꯔꯕꯁꯨ | ||
| Mizo | engpawhnise | ||
| Oromo | waan fedhe | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଯାହା ହେଉ | ||
| Quechua | mayqinpas | ||
| Sanskrit | यत्किमपि | ||
| Tatar | кайчан да булса | ||
| Tigrinya | ዝኾነ ይኹን | ||
| Tsonga | xihi na xihi | ||