whereabouts
the place where a person or thing is located
TRANSLATION
whereabouts = wo etwa, Aufenthaltsort, Verbleib, zeitweiliger Whereabouts are you? = Wo (in etwa) bist Du? Whereabouts are you from? = Woher kommen Sie? (formelle Anrede) Whereabouts are you headed? = Wohin willst du? to inquire into his whereabouts = sich nach seinem Verbleib erkundigen --- GOOGLE INDEX whereabouts: approximately 17,000,000 Google hits
STATISTICS
IN THE PRESS
Guo Guangchang, one of China’s biggest tycoons, is missing. His WHEREABOUTS are unknown; shares in firms linked to him are suspended.
The Economist
The Economist
Did you
know?
whereabouts
noun
- the place, especially the approximate place, where a person or thing is
(Collins Dictionary)
--
The noun whereabouts was first recorded in the late 18th century. Because of the "-s" at the end, which makes it sound like a plural, the word generally takes the plural form of the verb "be". (The criminal's whereabouts were secret).
But as the word actually only refers to one place, the singular may be used, although this is not as common (The whereabouts of my brother is of no interest to me). Occasionally it is spoken or written without the final "-s".
You can use it as a noun to refer to location or position (The navy had no idea as to the whereabouts of its submarine).
It is also typically heard in informal conversation, and is used as an adverb to mean "about or near which location" (Whereabouts did you park your car?). In these cases, you can replace it with "where".
A similar adverb is thereabouts, meaning "near that place". (We went to a restaurant just off the boulevard. It's easy to get a good meal thereabouts).
It can also mean "about then" or "about there". (He arrived at 2 pm or thereabouts). This can also be used without the final "-s".
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SYNONYMS
place, site, spot, location, address
---
SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"He's late for the meeting. Does anyone know his whereabouts?"
noun
- the place, especially the approximate place, where a person or thing is
(Collins Dictionary)
--
The noun whereabouts was first recorded in the late 18th century. Because of the "-s" at the end, which makes it sound like a plural, the word generally takes the plural form of the verb "be". (The criminal's whereabouts were secret).
But as the word actually only refers to one place, the singular may be used, although this is not as common (The whereabouts of my brother is of no interest to me). Occasionally it is spoken or written without the final "-s".
You can use it as a noun to refer to location or position (The navy had no idea as to the whereabouts of its submarine).
It is also typically heard in informal conversation, and is used as an adverb to mean "about or near which location" (Whereabouts did you park your car?). In these cases, you can replace it with "where".
A similar adverb is thereabouts, meaning "near that place". (We went to a restaurant just off the boulevard. It's easy to get a good meal thereabouts).
It can also mean "about then" or "about there". (He arrived at 2 pm or thereabouts). This can also be used without the final "-s".
---
SYNONYMS
place, site, spot, location, address
---
SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"He's late for the meeting. Does anyone know his whereabouts?"
