anyway

[ en-ee-wey ]

adverb

1. in any case; anyhow; nonetheless; regardless:

   Whether you like it or not, I'm going anyway.

2. (used to continue or resume the thread of a story or account):

   Anyway, we finally found a plumber who could come right over.

anyway

/ ˈɛnɪˌweɪ /

adverb

1. in any case; at any rate; nevertheless; anyhow
2. in a careless or haphazard manner
3. Usually any way . in any manner; by any means

Spelling Note

The adverb anyway is spelled as one word: It was snowing hard, but we drove to the play anyway. The two-word phrase any way means “in any manner”: Finish the job any way you choose. If the words “in the” can be substituted for “any,” the two-word phrase is called for: Finish the job in the way you choose. If the substitution cannot be made, the spelling is anyway.

Word History and Origins

Origin of anyway¹

First recorded in 1150–1200, anyway is from Middle English ani wei. See any, way ¹

Example Sentences

Will they do this stuff anyway?

From Slate

But the Tanton network pressed on anyway.

From Salon

And so those of us who work in the magic of art, and I do believe in its magic, are tasked with living two lives at once, one where we do work that we would do anyway, the good work, putting it out there, but knowing there’s no guarantee that it will come back.

From Salon

"So they have no awareness of what's going on, whereas Australians can look at the situation, make an adjustment and hit 75% of the punt they were going to anyway."

From BBC

Anyway, Biden’s preferred woman of color for vice president was Harris, the then-California senator whose own White House bid had bombed.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• anyhow
• ever
• once