WHOLE


Meaning of WHOLE in English

/ həʊl; NAmE hoʊl/ adjective , noun

■ adjective

1.

[ only before noun ] full; complete :

He spent the whole day writing.

We drank a whole bottle each.

The whole country (= all the people in it) mourned her death.

Let's forget the whole thing .

She wasn't telling the whole truth .

2.

[ only before noun ] used to emphasize how large or important sth is :

We offer a whole variety of weekend breaks.

I can't afford it—that's the whole point .

3.

not broken or damaged

SYN in one piece :

Owls usually swallow their prey whole (= without chewing it) .

➡ note at half

►  whole·ness noun [ U ]

—see also wholly

IDIOMS

Most idioms containing whole are at the entries for the nouns and verbs in the idioms, for example go the whole hog is at hog .  

- a whole lot

- a whole lot (of sth)

- the whole lot

■ noun

1.

[ C ] a thing that is complete in itself :

Four quarters make a whole.

The subjects of the curriculum form a coherent whole.

2.

[ sing. ] the ~ of sth all that there is of sth :

The effects will last for the whole of his life.

➡ note at half

IDIOMS

- as a whole

- on the whole

••

WORD ORIGIN

Old English hāl , of Germanic origin; related to Dutch heel and German heil , also to the verb hail (senses 1-3). The spelling with wh- (reflecting a dialect pronunciation with w- ) first appeared in the 15th cent.

Oxford Advanced Learner's English Dictionary.      Оксфордский английский словарь для изучающик язык на продвинутом уровне.