How
How , adverb
[Old English how, hou, hu, hwu, Anglo-Saxon h{not transcribed}, from the same root as hwā, hwat, who, what, pron. interrog.; akin to Old Saxon hwōw, Dutch hoe, compare German wie how, Gothic hwē wherewith, hwaiwa how. r182. See Who, and compare Why.]
1.
In what manner or way; by what means or process.
How can a man be born when he is old?
2.
To what degree or extent, number or amount; in what proportion; by what measure or quality.
O, how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day.
By how much they would diminish the present extent of the sea, so much they would impair the fertility, and fountains, and rivers of the earth.
3.
For what reason; from what cause.
How now, my love! why is your cheek so pale?
4.
In what state, condition, or plight.
How, and with what reproach, shall I return?
5.
By what name, designation, or title.
How art thou called?
6.
At what price; how dear. [Obsolete]
How a score of ewes now?
Let me beg you -- don't say “How?” for “What?”
How is used in each sense, interrogatively, interjectionally, and relatively; it is also often employed to emphasize an interrogation or exclamation. “How are the mighty fallen!” 2 Sam. i. 27. Sometimes, also, it is used as a noun; -- as, the how, the when, the wherefore. Shelley.