wherewithal

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where·with·al

(wâr′wĭth-ôl′, -wĭth-, hwâr′-)

The necessary means, especially financial means: didn't have the wherewithal to survive an economic downturn.

conj.

Wherewith.

pron.

Wherewith.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

wherewithal

the wherewithal necessary funds, resources, or equipment (for something or to do something): these people lack the wherewithal for a decent existence.

pron

a less common word for wherewith¹, wherewith²

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

where•with•al

(ˈʰwɛər wɪðˌɔl, -wɪθ-, ˈwɛər-)

n.

1. that with which to do something; means or supplies for the purpose or need, esp. money: the wherewithal to pay my rent.

adv.

2. by means of which; out of which.

3. Archaic. wherewith.

pron.

4. wherewith.

[1525–35]

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Noun

wherewithal - the necessary means (especially financial means)

means, substance - considerable capital (wealth or income); "he is a man of means"

wherewithal

noun resources, means, money, funds, capital, supplies, ready (informal), essentials, ready money She didn't have the financial wherewithal to start a new business.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

wherewithal

noun

1. The ability and the means to meet situations effectively:

resource (often used in plural), resourcefulness.

2. All things, such as money, property, or goods, having economic value:

asset (used in plural), capital, fortune, mean (used in plural), resource (used in plural), wealth.

Translations

i mezzi

wherewithal

[ˈwɛɒwɪðɔːl] N the wherewithal (to do sth) → los medios (para hacer algo), los recursos (para hacer algo)

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

wherewithal

[ˈ^hwɛə^rwɪðɔːl] n → moyens mpl
the wherewithal to do sth → les moyens de faire qch

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

wherewithal

n → nötiges Kleingeld; (= implements) → Utensilien pl

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

wherewithal

[ˈwɛəwɪðˌɔːl] n the wherewithal (to do sth) → i mezzi mpl (per fare qc)

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

Mentioned in ?

References in classic literature ?

Borrow all the money that you can get, for I have not the wherewithal to leave these lodgings, yet cannot possibly remain in them any longer.

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"God made you in the first place, and you've done considerable yourself to help Him along; but she gave you the wherewithal to work with, and that ain't to be despised; specially when anybody gives up her own luxuries and pleasures to do it.

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Rarely could the inmates of the cantonment boast of having made a full meal, and never of having wherewithal for the morrow.

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After the brilliant failure of his first theatrical venture, he dared not return to the lodging which he occupied in the Rue Grenier-sur-l'Eau, opposite to the Port-au-Foin, having depended upon receiving from monsieur the provost for his epithalamium, the wherewithal to pay Master Guillaume Doulx-Sire, farmer of the taxes on cloven-footed animals in Paris, the rent which he owed him, that is to say, twelve sols parisian; twelve times the value of all that he possessed in the world, including his trunk-hose, his shirt, and his cap.

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Only one thing was essential: to have money in the bank, without inquiring where it came from, so as to know that one had the wherewithal to buy meat for tomorrow.

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"Thou beast without bowels of mercy, why leave me my child, yet rob me of the wherewithal to feed it?"

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"Senor," replied the youth, "in this bundle I carry velvet pantaloons to match this jacket; if I wear them out on the road, I shall not be able to make a decent appearance in them in the city, and I have not the wherewithal to buy others; and so for this reason, as well as to keep myself cool, I am making my way in this fashion to overtake some companies of infantry that are not twelve leagues off, in which I shall enlist, and there will be no want of baggage trains to travel with after that to the place of embarkation, which they say will be Carthagena; I would rather have the King for a master, and serve him in the wars, than serve a court pauper."

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"No, sir; but it wants electricity to make it move, and the wherewithal to make the electricity--sodium to feed the elements, coal from which to get the sodium, and a coal-mine to supply the coal.

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"When one thinks," said Caderousse, letting his hand drop on the paper, "there is here wherewithal to kill a man more sure than if we waited at the corner of a wood to assassinate him!

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Having received wherewithal to allay his hunger, he disappeared, but in the course of a day or two returned to the camp, bringing with him his son, a miserable boy, still more naked and forlorn than himself.

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Porthos bit his lips because he saw not the wherewithal to dine.

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He has always the wherewithal to back up his projects; they strengthen France and never weaken her.

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