Word.ws English Dictionary

in what world

in what world prepositional phrase: how. (used in rhetorical questions to criticize something as completely inconsistent with reality and/or logic).

Prepositional phrase

  1. How. (used in rhetorical questions to criticize something as completely inconsistent with reality and/or logic).
    • In what world is it "wholly unconscionable and politically unpalatable" to deny Nigeria a Security Council veto?2005, Chicago journal of international law, volume 6, page 635
    • In what world is the ability to be attacked by bees on command a superpower?2014, Joseph R. Lallo, The Other Eight, volume 1

Synonyms of in what world

Origin of in what world

Use of a reference to alternative realities to imply that the thing criticized is inconsistent with our own reality.

Questions about in what world

What does in what world mean?
In what world means how. (used in rhetorical questions to criticize something as completely inconsistent with reality and/or logic).
What part of speech is in what world?
In what world is a prepositional phrase.

Words near in what world in the dictionary

  1. in waiting
  2. in waves
  3. in ways
  4. in weal and woe
  5. in what universe
  6. in what world
  7. in wine
  8. in wine, there is truth
  9. in with
  10. in with a chance
  11. in with a shout

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: in what world (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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