anyways adv Cf -s suff1
1 In any way, to any extent; at all. [OED3 anyways adv. 1 c1225→; appar in std literary use into the early 19th cent]
1638 in 1898 Springfield MA First Century 1.164, It is ordered . . not to sell or any ways pass away any Cannoe . . untill it be five years old. 1763 GA Gaz. (Savannah) 1 Sept [3]/2, [Advt:] Therefore all persons anyways indebted thereto, are requested to pay the same to the subscriber. 1768 in 1887 Franklin Complete Wks. 4.186, I . . said I should stay with pleasure, if I could any ways be useful to government. 1804 E. Argus (Portland ME) [8 Nov 2]/2 CT, And so of your butter and cheese and cider and any other articles—see that they are as good as you can any ways make them—And then you will find chaps enough to buy. 1842 Kirkland Forest Life 1.94 MI, We can’t make them any ways comfortable here. 1848 (1855) Ruxton Life Far West 18, Them English are darned fools; they can’t fix a rifle any ways; but that one did shoot ‘some;’ leastwise he made it throw plum-center. 1878 Eggleston Roxy 320 sIN, Ef I find . . thet you’re foolin’ weth me anyways, then I’ll take the other way of gittin’ even. 1884 Jewett Mate of Daylight 193 ME, Not that I mean that they are any ways contented. 1916 DN 4.288 sAppalachians, Is he any ways hurt? 1928 Ruppenthal Coll.KS, If you get to Taos anyways soon, go and see the ruins. 1928 Peterkin Scarlet Sister Mary 230 SC, Some women are silly like children, and get spoiled to death if you pet them or treat them anyways soft and easy. 1936 AmSp 11.355 eTX, It has been extra dry. I don’t reckon it will rain anyways soon. 1942 Eve. Sun (Hanover PA) 9 Oct 9/2, That the large amount of jarred goods and food donations received last Tuesday will not prove anyways excessive at the hospital was shown in the report of meals served. 1947 Eve. Independent (Massillon OH) 20 Dec 14/5, [Advt:] An excellent stock and grain farm. . . You could not any ways near build the buildings for price asked. 1959 Lomax Rainbow Sign 111 AL [Black], But if she had talked anyways back, he would have hit her. 1972 Daily Republican–Reg. (Mt. Carmel IL) 22 June 2/1, [Letter:] There are no rest rooms any ways near the ball field for the boys to use. 2013 Sandusky Reg. (OH) 29 Aug sec A 7/4, King’s eldest son . . spoke of a dream “not yet realized” in full. “We’ve got a lot of work to do but none of us should be any ways tired,” he said. “Why? Because we’ve come much too far from where we started.” [DARE Ed: This alludes to a well-known gospel song by Curtis Burrell which begins, “I don’t feel no ways tired.”]
2 introducing a subordinate clause: In whatever way that, however. Cf fix v B8
1848 (1855) Ruxton Life Far West 202, Red blood won’t ‘shine’ any ways you fix it. 1878 Eggleston Roxy 294 sIN, But I’m even weth her, any ways you kin fix it. 1887 Scribner’s Mag. 2.729 ME, Let ’em [=blueberries] git cold and they’re only fit to cook—not but what I eat ’em any ways I can git ’em. 1903 Wasson Cap’n Simeon’s Store 20 ME, There ’s a dinged sight too much bookin’ of it at this day o’ the world, anyways you can fix it.
3 In any case, anyway. [OED3 anyways adv. 3 1828→; “colloq. . . Chiefly N. Amer. in later use.”]
1864 Harper’s New Mth. Mag. 29.819 MO, Anyways, that wasn’t the chap that married us. 1886 Ibid 73.697 VA [Black], Dat sutny is a comical ole man anyways. 1887 Scribner’s Mag. 2.729 ME, The mukis membrane o’ the knees gits dried up. . . So I’ve be’n told, anyways. 1899 (1912) Green VA Folk-Speech, Anyways. . . In any case, at any rate. 1908 DN 3.287 eAL, wGA, Anyways, adv. Anyway. 1937 Steinbeck Of Mice 36 CA, What the hell kind of bed you giving us, anyways. We don’t want no pants rabbits. 1953 Brewer Word Brazos 10 eTX [Black], Wid dey las’ load dat Friday, what was de thirteenth of de mont’—dat’s a bad luck day, you know—anyways, dey spy sump’n or ’nothuh swimmin’ to’a’ds ’em from de Gulf. 1954 Harder Coll. cwTN, But we had a nice ride anyways. c1960 Wilson Coll. csKY. 1968 DARE (Qu. U40, Somebody who is temporarily out of money: you might say “At the moment he’s _____.”) Inf VT8, Broke—badly bent, anyways [laughter]. 1968 Moody Horse 213 nwKS (as of c1920), Oh well, it don’t make no never-minds anyways. 2003 DARE File ceMA, In case anyone is keeping track, I grew up in and around Boston, and “anyways” sounds totally normal to me. Ibid OH, I hear it [=anyways] only sporadically here in SE Ohio (traditionally S Midl), and usually from students from larger urban areas, like Dayton and Columbus. It isn’t a form the locals and rural people use, as far as I can tell. 2005 Post–Std. (Syracuse NY) 24 Jan sec A 7/4, [Letter:] I will look for it in the paper to see what transpires. Thank you for your time, anyways. 2013 Strout Burgess Boys 15 ME, “Anyways,” he continued, and saw a small tightening on Helen’s face. She hated how he said “Anyways,” though he always forgot this.
4 Used to introduce a range of possible values. [Perh by confusion with anywheres adv]
1904 Engineers’ Soc. W. PA Proc. 20.106, The best practice is to recover—well, anyways from 1040 to 1100 pounds of spelter to a ton of ore. 1917 Engin.-Contracting 48.282A NYC, Symptoms of Azoturia develop in a horse that has been given a sudden rest ranging anyways from a half day or more. 1965 DARE Tape FL22, Anyways from May until October.