Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English.
1.
You use ~ when you are adding a comment which is surprising or which contrasts with what has just been said.
This was not an easy decision. It is, ~, a decision that we feel is dictated by our duty...
Some of the food crops failed. However, the cotton did quite well...
ADV: ADV with cl
2.
You use ~ before an adjective or adverb to emphasize that the degree or extent of something cannot change a situation.
You should always strive to achieve more, ~ well you have done before...
However hard she tried, nothing seemed to work...
ADV: ADV adj/adv, ADV many/much emphasis
3.
You use ~ when you want to say that it makes no difference how something is done.
However we adopt healthcare reform, it isn’t going to save major amounts of money...
Wear your hair ~ you want.
CONJ
4.
You use ~ in expressions such as or ~ long it takes and or ~ many there were to indicate that the figure you have just mentioned may not be accurate.
Wait 30 to 60 minutes or ~ long it takes.
ADV: ADV many/much , ADV adv vagueness
5.
You can use ~ to ask in an emphatic way how something has happened which you are very surprised about. Some speakers of English think that this form is incorrect and prefer to use ‘how ever’.
However did you find this place in such weather?
= how
QUEST emphasis