Forum: english.stackexchange.com
Tags: <grammaticality><conjunctions>
Title: Improper use of "Whenever"
Question: I increasingly encounter people who misuse "whenever" when they really mean "when":   Whenever I first came to St. Louis, I lived with my Aunt Judy...   Bugs me to death. Obviously they are talking about a one-time event, not "every time I visited St. Louis", which would be a valid use of "whenever".  Is this a common misuse? Is this a regional thing (St. Louis, MO, USA)? This isn't a valid alternate use, is it?

Answers:
sents: text: I keep hearing a couple of people from Kentucky and Oklahoma say things like, "Whenever I was ten years old".
text: Like they were ten years old more than once.
text: Or, "Whenever I was in High School".
text: This just seems like the word should be "When" in these circumstances.
text: It drives me crazy when I hear this.
answer_details: author: english.stackexchange.com/users/17260/Mikey
score: 5
sents: text: This usage, where it means "at an unspecified/uncertain time" is fairly common.
text: I usually hear it (and say it) in a construction more like, "Whenever it was that I first came to...".
text: I don't know if you would also object to this structure.
text: In terms of being "valid", the dictionary lists: adv.
text: At whatever time.
text: When.
text: See Usage Note at whatever. conj.
text: At whatever time
text: that: We can leave whenever you're ready.
text: Every time that
text: : The child smiles whenever the puppy appears.
text: Surely you say things like "whenever you want" -- this is the same "whenever".
answer_details: author: english.stackexchange.com/users/449/Kosmonaut
score: 4
sents: text: This is a known dialect feature of the American South (but I can't find a reference right now).
text: I don't know that it has a different meaning from "when" in your dialect.
answer_details: author: english.stackexchange.com/users/257/JoFrhwld
score: 3
sents: text: I have noticed this as well among youth in Northwest Arkansas.
text: I first started noticing it about 6 months ago.
text: My wife has started misusing "whenever" as well.
text: It should only be used to refer to indefinite or unknown times, not a single, specific time.
text: Correct use: "Whenever I am in St. Louis, I visit Busch Gardens."
text: Incorrect use: "Whenever I was 5 years old, I went to Busch Gardens."
answer_details: author: english.stackexchange.com/users/None/
score: 3
sents: text: The first time I heard it used incorrectly was on MTV by a young man from TN.
text: Since then I have noticed news reporters on HLN and CNN use it as well.
text: My first thought was that it was about "location" but I am now inclined to believe that it is either about education or people hearing it and thinking that they, themselves have been wrong all their lives.
text: "Whenever I was at the fire...." I too cringe when it is improperly used.
answer_details: author: english.stackexchange.com/users/33495/anno
score: 1
sents: text: This is standard usage in Northern Ireland.
text: I've never heard it anywhere else
text: (I live in the Republic, and I've never heard it here or from my English relatives).
answer_details: author: english.stackexchange.com/users/1696/TRiG
score: 0

Summary of the answers:
This use of the word "whenever" may be a regional phenomenon, with it being more common in Kentucky, Oklahoma, Northwest Arkansas and the American South in general. It may also be standard usage in Northern Ireland.
This usage is common as a dialect term in the southern states of the US and in Northern Ireland.
This use of the word "whenever" may be a regional phenomenon, with it being more common in Kentucky, Oklahoma, Northwest Arkansas and the American South in general. It may also be standard usage in Northern Ireland.
This usage, where it means "at an unspecified/uncertain time" is fairly common in certain locations. It is a known dialect feature of the American South. This is also standard usage in Northern Ireland.
If "whenever" is used to mean "at an unspecified/uncertain time, it is fairly common. However, the expression referred to in the question is used in the American South and in Northern Ireland.
This misuse of the word "whenever" appears to exist in the south of the USA and Northern Ireland. The word "whenever" should be used to refer to an "uncertain/unspecified time".