What does "how" mean?
The means by which something is accomplished.
How
/haʊ/ adv, conj, intj, name, noun, slang
adv, conj, intj, name, noun, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The means by which something is accomplished.
- Grammar: how is listed as adv, conj, intj, name, noun, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: as, by what means, como, emphatic modifier.
- Useful contrasts: why.
- Usage evidence: How many close friends do you have?
How to use "how"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "how" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "how" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "how" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "how" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "how" is acting as adv, conj, intj, name, noun, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "as" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "how", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The means by which something is accomplished.
"I am not interested in the why, but in the how."
- 2 An artificial barrow or tumulus; in later folklore, associated with fairies. dialectal
"Fianlly, as regards the places in which these rites and mysteries may have been held, certain writers believe them to have been the "Fairy Hills" or "howes" in various parts of Scotland."
- 3 radiotelephony clear-code word for the letter H.
- 4 In northern England, a low hill. dialectal
Adverb
- 1 To what degree or extent. interrogative, not-comparable
"How often do you practice?"
- 2 In what manner interrogative, not-comparable
"Economics is a messy discipline: too fluid to be a science, too rigorous to be an art. Perhaps it is fitting that economists’ most-used metric, gross domestic product (GDP), is a tangle too.[…]But as a foundation for analysis it is highly subjective: it rests on difficult decisions about what counts as a territory, what counts as output and how to value it. Indeed, economists are still tweaking it."
- 3 In what manner:; By what means. interrogative, not-comparable
"How do you solve this puzzle?"
- 4 In what manner:; With overtones of why, for what reason. interrogative, not-comparable
"How should I know whether he likes raisins or not? Ask him!"
- 5 In what manner:; In what form, shape, measure, quantity, etc. interrogative, not-comparable
"How do you sell your brandy? We sell it by the gallon, and not by the bottle."
Show 8 more definitions
- 6 In what manner:; With what meaning or effect. interrogative, not-comparable
"How the stock market interprets events has real consequences."
- 7 In what manner:; By what title or what name. interrogative, not-comparable
""How art thou called? Thy name make known; Thy father's name and family,—tell me thy father's and thine own.""
- 8 In what manner:; At what price, for what amount (of money). interrogative, not-comparable
"Shal. How a score of ewes now? Sil. Thereafter as they be: a score of good ewes may be worth ten pounds."
- 9 In what state or condition. interrogative, not-comparable
"How are you?"
- 10 In the manner in which. not-comparable
"I said it exactly how he said it."
- 11 In any manner in which; in whatever way; however. not-comparable
"People should be free to live how they want."
- 12 In which. nonstandard, not-comparable, relative
"The way how you walk is funny."
- 13 Used as a modifier to indicate surprise, delight, or other strong feelings in an exclamation. not-comparable
"How very interesting!"
Conjunction
- 1 That, the fact that. informal
"She told me how her father was a doctor."
Intj
- 1 What?, pardon? US, dialectal
- 2 A greeting, used in representations of Native American speech.
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname. countable, uncountable
- 2 A town in Oconto County, Wisconsin, United States, named after Calvin F. How Jr. countable, uncountable
- 3 A hamlet in Hayton parish, City of Carlisle district, Cumbria, England (OS grid ref NY5056). countable, uncountable
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"How many close friends do you have?"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "how"?
Common synonyms include: as, by what means, como, emphatic modifier, exclamatory intensifier, hello.
How do you use "how" in a sentence?
How many close friends do you have?
How do you pronounce "how"?
Pronounced /haʊ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English how, hou, hu, hwu, from Old English hū, from Proto-West Germanic *hwō, from Proto-Germanic *hwō (“through what, how”), from the same root as hwæt (“who, what”). /hw/ > /h/ due to wh-cluster reduction in Old English; compare who, which underwent this change later, and thus is spelt wh (Middle English spelling of /hw/) but pronounced /h/ (it previously had a different vowel, hence avoided the spelling and sound change in Old English). Vowel change per Great Vowel Shift. Akin to Scots hoo, foo (“how”), North Frisian ho, hü, hur (“how”), Saterland Frisian wo (“how”), West Frisian hoe (“how”), Dutch hoe (“how”), Low German ho, wo, wu (“how”), German wie (“how”), Swedish hur (“how”). See who and compare why.
Etymology 2
From Middle English howe, hough, hogh, partly from Old English hōh (“promontory”), and partly from Old Norse haugr (“a how, mound”). Compare Old French höe (“hillock, hill”), from the same Germanic source.
Etymology 3
From a Siouan language; compare Lakota háu. Alternatively from Wyandot haau.