Which vs Witch: Meaning and Examples
Which asks about a choice or introduces a clause. A witch is a person said to practise magic.
Which one is yours? a witch in a folk tale.
The test that settles it
Ask whether the word names a person. Only witch can. Which never names anything; it either poses a question or links a clause to what came before.
“___ platform is it” → a choice between platforms, so which.
“the ___ in the story” → a person, so witch.
The t in witch is the point of her hat. Which has no hat, because it is not a person.
Which: asking or linking
An interrogative asking someone to pick from a known set, and a relative pronoun introducing a clause about something already mentioned.
Which do you prefer?
the report, which arrived late
Which way now?
Is it asking you to choose, or linking a clause? Then which.
Witch: a practitioner of magic
A person, usually a woman in folklore, credited with magical power. Also used in compounds like witch hazel and witch hunt.
a witch in a pointed hat
the Salem witch trials
a political witch hunt
Is it a person or a compound about one? Then witch.
Side by side
| Which | Witch |
|---|---|
| Asks or links | Names a person |
| Pronoun | Noun |
| No t | Has the t of the hat |
| Which one? | a wicked witch |
The exceptions
Witch hazel is a shrub whose bark yields an astringent lotion. The witch in it comes from an Old English word for pliant branches, not from magic — but the spelling is still witch.
Which can sit directly in front of a noun: which train, which of these. That is still the question word, not a different one, and it never gains a t.
Where people get it wrong
| Incorrect | Correct | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Witch of these is cheaper? | Which of these is cheaper? | A choice. |
| a wicked which in the woods | a wicked witch in the woods | A person. |
| a media which hunt | a media witch hunt | The compound takes the person word. |
| I forget witch one she chose. | I forget which one she chose. | A choice. |
Practice — choose the right word, then check yourself.
- ___ bus goes to the station?
- The children dressed as a ___.
- a bottle of ___ hazel
- Tell me ___ you would rather have.
- the film, ___ opened last week
Show the answers
1. Which 2. witch 3. witch 4. which 5. which
Frequently asked
Do they sound the same?
In most modern accents yes. Some Scottish, Irish and older American speakers still aspirate the wh, which separates them in speech.
Is witch hunt one word?
Usually two in British English, often hyphenated or closed in American. All spellings keep witch.
More words people confuse
