whosoever

Whosoever is a pronoun used to refer to any person who meets a condition or who is described, equivalent to “anyone who” or “whoever.” It can function as a relative pronoun in a restrictive sense, as in “Whosoever breaks the rule will be punished,” or as an indefinite pronoun meaning “any person at all” in more formal or literary contexts.

Etymology wise, whosoever is a compound of who and the archaic particle suffix -soever. This particle, found in various forms after interrogatives and relative pronouns (what-soever, where-soever, etc.), comes from older stages of English and was retained primarily in religious, ceremonial, or literary texts. The construction dates to Middle English and is now largely preserved in historical or stylistic uses.

Usage and modern status clarify that whosoever is largely archaic in ordinary speech. In everyday English, speakers normally use whoever. Whosoever still appears in Bible translations, doctrinal writings, and formal proclamations where a universal, justice-oriented sense is intended, as in “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” It can take both subject and object positions in older constructions, though such uses can sound stilted to contemporary readers.

Variants include whoso and, less commonly, whomsoever; the form is generally considered obsolete outside of specific religious or literary contexts. For most modern writing, whoever or the context-appropriate alternative provides the same meaning with clearer, more current language.