Worldswhere

Worldswhere is a term used in speculative fiction and philosophy to describe a class of alternate realities or narrative spaces defined by the phrase “worlds where” certain conditions hold. It functions as a shorthand for discussing contingencies and branching outcomes across possible worlds.

Etymology and scope: The term fuses “worlds” and “where” and is treated as a compound noun in some writings. It is not an established term in formal logic or literary theory, and its meaning varies by author. In broad use, it may refer to either possible-world semantics or a narrative device for branching timelines.

Usage in fiction and media: In interactive fiction, role-playing games, and choose-your-own-adventure formats, writers describe a “worldswhere” space as the set of alternative realities accessible from a given choice. Diagrams or maps may illustrate how decisions generate divergent outcomes.

Relation to philosophy and science: In modal logic, possible worlds semantics provides a framework for counterfactuals and contingency. The “worldswhere” concept can be a consumer-friendly label for that idea when discussing thought experiments or cross-world interactions in science fiction.

See also: possible worlds, branching narrative, multiverse, counterfactuals.