anyway
//ˈɛniweɪ//
informalDefinitions
1.Regardless; anyhow.
- He didn't enjoy washing his car, but it was so dirty that he did it anyway.
- Raymond Carver had only moments late at night to write after grueling day jobs, tense relationships, putting kids to bed, and dealing with his own alcoholism. And he wrote anyway.
2.Used to indicate that a statement explains or supports a previous statement. See anyhow and at least.
- I don't think that's true. I haven't found any evidence, anyway.
3.Used to indicate a change of subject.
- "I'll be ninety my next birthday, but Louella doesn't tell her age. Anyway, we're going to have you and Cynthia up for supper."
4.Used at the end of a question for emphasis, or to direct the conversation to something of more broad importance (compare with more to the point).
- “But I say, Kid, isn't that going it a little too strong? Whisky and alcohol's bad enough; but when it comes to brandy and pepper-sauce and, ” ¶ “Dump it in. Who's making this punch, anyway?”
- “We should probably wait until Luke gets here to talk about it,” Leia suggested quietly before Han could answer. Lando glanced past Han, as if only just noticing Luke's absence. “Where is he, anyway?”
Frequency
Overall
Common· #987
By learning goal
- Everyday conversation
- Common
- General reading & writing
- Common
- Academic
- Rare
- Literature
- Uncommon
Related words
Word family
Etymology
From any + way.