Suffix · forms adverbs
Combines with some, no, every, any, and else to create indefinite place adverbs: somewhere, nowhere, everywhere, anywhere, elsewhere.
Written by Bryan López, English teacher · Updated
-where comes from Old English "hwær" (where). It attaches to a closed set of words — some, no, every, any, else — to build indefinite place adverbs. Unlike productive suffixes that can attach to any new base, -where only works with these five elements. You cannot create new words like "anywherehouse".
• somewhere = in some unspecified place • nowhere = in no place (total negation of place) • everywhere = in all places (totality) • anywhere = in any place (free choice, or in negative/question contexts) • elsewhere = in another place (the opposite of here) "Elsewhere" is the most literary of the five — you will find it in essays, novels, and poetry wherever a narrator contrasts "here" with another unnamed place.
"Nowhere" carries strong rhetorical power: "nowhere to run, nowhere to hide." "Everywhere" builds hyperbole and universality: "love is everywhere." "Elsewhere" works as an elegant one-word contrast: "her mind was elsewhere," "he sought the answer elsewhere." These constructions are hallmarks of polished prose.
-where/wɛr/ · sounds like "wer"
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"Someplace" and "noplace" exist in informal American English but are avoided in formal and literary writing.
"Anyplace" is informal American. Formal and literary English always uses "anywhere".
"Elsewhere" is always one word, no space or hyphen.
A trick to remember it
The literary power of "elsewhere": when you want to convey that someone is distracted or that a solution lies outside the current situation, "elsewhere" is more elegant than "somewhere else" or "in another place." "Her thoughts were elsewhere" is a hallmark of polished fiction.
Exercise 1 · Form the word
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
What is the key difference between "anywhere" and "somewhere"?
Exercise 3 · Form the word
The suffix -where combines with some, no, every, any, and else to create indefinite place adverbs: somewhere, nowhere, everywhere, anywhere, elsewhere. In Spanish it usually maps to -donde / anywhere.
The ending -where is pronounced /wɛr/ · sounds like "wer". For example, "somewhere".
"some" becomes "somewhere". It is a typical example of the -where suffix.
From the past participle of "bind": forms adjectives meaning "confined by," "heading toward," or "obligated by." Spellbound, earthbound, homebound, hidebound, snowbound, inbound.
Added to question words (what, who, where, when, how, which) to create free relatives meaning "no matter what/who/where/when/how/which."
From Old English "-weard" (direction): forms adverbs and adjectives of direction or tendency. Inward, outward, forward, wayward, awkward.
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