The term however can be used as a conjunction or as an adverb.
In order to discover the meaning of the term however , it is essential, first of all, to know its etymological origin. In this case, we can state that it derives from Latin, specifically it emanates from the expression per hoc , which can be translated as “therefore.”
The notion of however is used in two ways: as an adversative conjunction and as a cultured adverb . In any case, it is not a word in frequent use today.
However, as a conjunction
To understand what the concept refers to, you must first understand its function . A conjunction is an invariable word that expresses links of subordination or coordination between terms or expressions. In the case of coordinating conjunctions , as their name indicates, they relate elements through coordination.
We said above that it can, however, be used as an adversative conjunction . Adversative conjunctions are coordinating conjunctions that link elements with meanings that are opposite at the discursive level. However, in this framework, it is synonymous with but .
Among the synonyms of however are from but to despite, passing through however or even however .
Let's see how it acts as an adversative conjunction through an example : "I am young, but not impulsive." As can be seen, however, it links two syntactic units that are opposite (youth and the fact of not being impulsive can be considered contradictory elements, since it is believed that young people are impulsive). The phrase “I am young, but not impulsive” has the same meaning.
The word however appears in classic works such as "Don Quixote."
Its use as an adverb
An adverb , on the other hand, is a word with lexical meaning that modifies an expression, an adjective, a verb or another kind of term.
Here, however, it is synonymous with however , referring to something that is not an impediment: “Life put me in front of great difficulties, but I always got ahead with effort and sacrifice” (the “great difficulties,” in this case, are not an impediment to “get ahead” thanks to “effort and sacrifice” ). Equivalently, it could have been said: “Life put me in front of great difficulties, however I always got ahead with effort and sacrifice.”
However, an archaism
In addition to everything indicated, we can highlight that, currently, the word however is considered an archaism, that is, it is not used regularly at all. So much so that it is replaced by one of the synonyms that it already has and that we have previously explained. Therefore, it is difficult to find a text today that uses the term in question, although we can find it in classic works from past centuries.
A good example of the latter is in “Don Quixote de la Mancha” (1605). Thus, in this novel we find phrases that use the word however that concerns us now. This would be the case of the following: "That is enough for me," replied Don Quixote, "to believe your deception: however, to get you out of it at all points, let our horses come, which in less time than it takes you to raise your visor, if God "If my lady and my arm are worth it, I will see your face and you will see that I am not the defeated Don Quixote that you think."