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Sofi H
What's the difference between "whole" and "entire"? Could you tell me the difference between "whole" and "entire", please? For example: Can I say "throughout the whole world"? Because someone corrected me and written "entire" instead of "whole". Why is it?
Jan 6, 2020 12:52 AM
Answers · 7
Both words have the same meaning. :)
January 6, 2020
Thank you Dan Smith
January 6, 2020
This is a perfect example of the way English is based on two main sources of vocabulary. "Whole" is from Old English. "Entire" is from Latin by way of French. There are many, many examples of pairs of words that are near-synonyms, one from Old English (or "Anglo-Saxon"), one from Latin. Because French and Latin were spoken by the aristocracy, the Latin-derived words tend to be formal, technical, or legal. As a Spanish speaker you should make use of this! Spanish is derived from Latin. There are many "cognates," obviously related words in English and Spanish. For example, "entire" is almost the same word as "entero." "What's the difference between 'whole' and 'entire?'" The main difference is that "whole" is our Anglo-Saxon-derived word and "entire" is our Latin-derived word.
January 6, 2020
Both have the same meaning but "entire" sounds a little bit more sophisticated. But they are perfect synonyms in meaning.
January 6, 2020
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