every which way
12
4.9
- idiom
- Informal
:
por todas partes
- We've examined this stuff every which way!
- goes every which way
- ran every which way
- scattered every which way
We in every which way you can think of.
- We in every which way you can think of.
- Just find ways to cut corners and save money every which way you can.
- They wanted these facts to be known, and they bent the law every which way to achieve it.
- But then we realized that there were only four woodcuts and they turned them every which way and just put them next to dates.
- And so there's not, it's harder to relate to these other people if you're if your story is being told in every which way possible.
- Well, it means that a sword obviously cuts and a flaming sword burns, and so a flaming sword cuts and burns, and if it turns every which way, there's no escaping it.
- Your shoulder is a ball and socket joint and you can move your shoulder, your upper, your arm every which way because it's that ball and socket joint in there.
- But diapers are just the number one thing we're, you know, trying to get, and we're doing it in every which way.
- And when you do call them out, like I said, you need to be prepared for gaslighting in every which way.
- Dead, intellectually dead every which way because they've lost.
- But yeah, I just like trigger warnings every which way.
Examples
-
Mother Zoe was still in her bathrobe, with her gray hair kind of standing out every which way.
Fiction book (1993) -
I'm telling you Les, it's just trouble every which way over here.
-
I have tried every which way I know how.
-
- ...while I looked at it every which way.
-
Just find ways to cut corners and save money every which way you can.
-
The other side of those hills, people are scattered every which way for days on end.
-
My shoes were scattered every which way, a hat box knocked over.
Fiction book (1997) -
People ran every which way, trying to get out of the drenching.
Fiction book (1993) -
I've looked at it from every which way, and I can't figure it out.
-
Harlem was like a beehive, with people running every which way, going to work, school, or entertainment.
Synonyms
126
2.4
In a way that has no clear plan or order
44
2.7
By chance, without any plan or order
34
2.3
To do something in any way possible
27
5.5
In a way that has no clear reason or plan
22
6.7
Doing things without careful choice or noticing differences
9
6.1
In a way that is not planned or organized
1
8.2
In a random, messy way without a plan
1
7.3
In a confused, messy way with no order
How Disorganized
Surface Forms
Morphology
The core idea ‘in all ways/directions’ is recoverable from the constituents (especially 'every' + 'way'), but the insertion of 'which' and the colloquial/disorganized nuance ('randomly' or 'in a mess') are not fully predictable. A B1 learner who knows the words will likely infer the general 'all directions' sense but may miss the idiomatic, informal flavor without prior exposure.
Etymology
Every which way comes from the simple image of moving or throwing things in every direction, as if you must choose which way to go. So it now means 'in all directions' or 'in a disorganized, random way'.