wholes

Wholes is the plural form of the noun whole, used to refer to complete units, the total amount of something, or the entirety of a collection when considered as a unit. The word can describe quantities measured in whole units rather than fractions, as in "counting in wholes" or "the wholes of the dataset." In general prose, "the wholes" may appear in contrast with "the parts" when discussing systems, groups, or compilations.

In mathematics, "whole" is associated with whole numbers, the non-negative integers including zero. The plural "wholes" is uncommon outside mathematical phrasing; more often one speaks of "the whole number" or "whole-number values." The adjective sense of "whole"—meaning complete or undivided—is widely used, as in "a whole cake" or "the whole year." The concept also features in philosophy and systems theory, where a whole is an entity that may display emergent properties not evident in its components.

Etymology: the word "whole" derives from Old English hal or hālu; the plural form follows regular English noun pluralization to "wholes." See also Whole, Whole numbers, Unity, System.