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Whole

[hohl]

adjective

comprising the full quantity, amount, extent, number, etc., without diminution or exception; entire, full, or total: He ate the whole pie. They ran the whole distance.

containing all the elements properly belonging; complete: We have a whole set of antique china.

undivided; in one piece: to swallow a thing whole.

Mathematics. integral, or not fractional.

not broken, damaged, or impaired; intact: Thankfully, the vase arrived whole.

EXPAND

uninjured or unharmed; sound: He was surprised to find himself whole after the crash.

pertaining to all aspects of human nature, especially one's physical, intellectual, and spiritual development: education for the whole person.

COLLAPSE

noun

the whole assemblage of parts or elements belonging to a thing; the entire quantity, account, extent, or number: He accepted some of the parts but rejected the whole.

a thing complete in itself, or comprising all its parts or elements.

10.

an assemblage of parts associated or viewed together as one thing; a unitary system.

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Whole is always a great word to know.

So is common divisor. Does it mean:

a number that is a submultiple of all the numbers of a given set

a number or quantity placed before and multiplying another quantity, such as 3 in the expression 3x

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Idioms

11.

as a whole, all things included or considered; altogether: As a whole, the relocation seems to have been beneficial.

12.

on/upon the whole,

in view of all the circumstances; after consideration.

disregarding exceptions; in general: On the whole, the neighborhood is improving.

13.

out of whole cloth, without foundation in fact; fictitious: a story made out of whole cloth.

Origin:
before 900; Middle English hole, hool (adj. and noun), Old English hāl (adj.); cognate with Dutch heel, German heil, Old Norse heill; see hale¹, heal; spelling with w reflects dial. form

Related forms

whole·ness, noun

self-whole, adjective

Can be confused: hole, whole (see synonym note at hole; see synonym note at the current entry).

Synonyms
1. undiminished, integral, complete. 5. unimpaired, perfect. 8. totality, aggregate. Whole, total mean the entire or complete sum or amount. The whole is all there is; every part, member, aspect; the complete sum, amount, quantity of anything, not divided; the entirety: the whole of one's property, family. Total also means whole, complete amount, or number, but conveys the idea of something added together or added up: The total of their gains amounted to millions.

Antonyms
1. partial. 8. part.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To Whole

Example Sentences

Let's call the whole thing off.

The world has sped up, become more connected and a whole lot busier.

The whole is produced with passion and expertise.

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Collins

World English Dictionary

whole (həʊl)

—*adj*
1.	containing all the component parts necessary to form a total; complete: a whole apple
2.	constituting the full quantity, extent, etc
3.	uninjured or undamaged
4.	healthy
5.	having no fractional or decimal part; integral: a whole number
6.	of, relating to, or designating a relationship established by descent from the same parents; full: whole brothers
7.	informal (US), (Canadian) out of whole cloth entirely without a factual basis

—*adv*
8.	in an undivided or unbroken piece: to swallow a plum whole

—n
9.	all the parts, elements, etc, of a thing
10.	an assemblage of parts viewed together as a unit
11.	a thing complete in itself
12.	as a whole considered altogether; completely
13.	on the whole
	a. taking all things into consideration
	b. in general

[Old English hāl, hǣl; related to Old Frisian hāl, hēl, Old High German heil, Gothic hails; compare hale¹]

'wholeness

—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

whole

O.E. hal "entire, unhurt, healthy," from P.Gmc. *khailaz "undamaged" (cf. O.S. hel, O.N. heill, O.Fris. hal, M.Du. hiel, Du. heel, O.H.G., Ger. heil "salvation, welfare"), from PIE *koilas (cf. O.S.C. celu "whole, complete;" see health). The spelling with wh- developed c.1420.

EXPAND

Whole-hearted is first recorded 1840. For phrase whole hog, see hog.

COLLAPSE

American Heritage

Medical Dictionary

whole (hōl)
adj.