[hou] 
| 1. | in what way or manner; by what means?: How did the accident happen? |
| 2. | to what extent, degree, etc.?: How damaged is the car? |
| 3. | in what state or condition?: How are you? |
| 4. | for what reason; why?: How can you talk such nonsense? |
| 5. | to what effect; with what meaning?: How is one to interpret his action? |
| 6. | what?: How do you mean? If they don't have vanilla, how about chocolate? |
| 7. | (used as an intensifier): How seldom I go there! |
| 8. | by what title or name?: How does one address the president? |
| 9. | at what price: How are the new cars going, cheaper than last year's models? |
| 10. | by what amount or in what measure or quantity?: How do you sell these tomatoes? |
| 11. | in what form or shape?: How does the demon appear in the first act of the opera? How does the medication come? |
| 12. | the manner or way in which: He couldn't figure out how to solve the problem. |
| 13. | about the manner, condition, or way in which: I don't care how you leave your desk when you go. Be careful how you act. |
| 14. | in whatever manner or way; however: You can travel how you please. |
| 15. | Informal. that: He told us how he was honest and could be trusted. |
| 16. | a question concerning the way or manner in which something is done, achieved, etc.: a child's unending whys and hows. |
| 17. | a way or manner of doing something: to consider all the hows and wherefores. |
| 18. | a word formerly used in communications to represent the letter H. |
| 19. | and how! Informal. certainly! you bet!: Am I happy? And how! |
| 20. | Here's how, Informal. (used as a toast). |
| 21. | how come? Informal. how is it that? why?: How come you never visit us anymore? |
| 22. | how so? how does it happen to be so? why?: You haven't any desire to go? How so? |
| how (hou) adv.
[Middle English howe, from Old English hū; see kwo- in Indo-European roots.] |
how come follows a statement and asks the question "why" or "in what way," as in You're not going? How come? The related phrase how so? functions the same way, as in You say she's changed her mind
how so? How come is short for how did it come about that and dates from the mid-1800s; how so, short for how is it so or how is it that , dates from about 1300.