Does “everywhere and nowhere” mean “irrelevant”?





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An Italian student, a young man of twenty, came to me today with a bunch of papers in his bag. It was the questions and answers to a multiple choice English quiz. We're talking hundreds of questions. He needs to pass this exam really well if he has any hope of being accepted in a military academy.



We go through the questions and answers that he is unsure of until we reach this one…




Choose the alternative which is closest in meaning to the word in brackets and which does not change the meaning of the sentence. “The question is [irrelevant]”



[ ] not respectful

[ ] hard to answer

[ ] inappropriate

[ ] very important

[x] everywhere and nowhere




He reasoned that "inappropriate" was the best choice but the so-called correct answer is the one marked x. I don't think neither is right and the "correct" answer is an idiom with which I am very unfamiliar. The expression that I do know is “neither here nor there”



Wiktionary defines it




Having no significance or influence on the question at hand.




The synonyms listed are: beside the point, betwixt and between, irrelevant, unimportant, unrelated, impertinent



But it has been many years since I lived in the UK, and maybe “everywhere and nowhere" is used nowadays. Google tells me it is the title of an English 2011 film, which suggests that the idiom(?) is used but it is not listed in any of the main dictionaries I consulted.



Oxford Dictionaries
Collins Dictionary
Merriam-Webster
WordNet



copy of a multiple choice self-study aid




  1. Is the answer “everywhere and nowhere” in the multiple choice quiz right or wrong? Please provide supporting evidence.










share|improve this question
























  • Who prepared the questions and answers?
    – user240918
    11 hours ago










  • @user240918 I don't know, I think someone from the military academy. There are a few other answers (literally three or four) which smell off to me but the rest are good.
    – Mari-Lou A
    11 hours ago










  • I am UK native, and I have heard the expression "everywhere and nowhere", first of all in the lyrics of a pop song "Hi Ho Silver Lining" by Jeff Beck (1967) You're everywhere and nowhere, babyThat's where you're atGoing down a bumpy hillsideIn your hippy hat (etc). I always heard it used to mean "severely disorganised, unworldly, spaced out, etc". I think this "correct" answer given (by whom?) does not mean "irrelevant", but neither do the others. The other answers are wildly wrong, this one is just, well, weird. Maybe the hundreds of questions are a test of the candidate's determination?
    – Michael Harvey
    10 hours ago










  • @MichaelHarvey the actual number of questions asked on the exam day is 60 so... he's doing his utmost to memorize all the answers. Some questions are really easy but a few are tough. This one sounded weird to me.
    – Mari-Lou A
    10 hours ago










  • As far as I know, in multiple choice questions, one or more questions may have no correct answer!
    – user240918
    10 hours ago



















up vote
0
down vote

favorite












An Italian student, a young man of twenty, came to me today with a bunch of papers in his bag. It was the questions and answers to a multiple choice English quiz. We're talking hundreds of questions. He needs to pass this exam really well if he has any hope of being accepted in a military academy.



We go through the questions and answers that he is unsure of until we reach this one…




Choose the alternative which is closest in meaning to the word in brackets and which does not change the meaning of the sentence. “The question is [irrelevant]”



[ ] not respectful

[ ] hard to answer

[ ] inappropriate

[ ] very important

[x] everywhere and nowhere




He reasoned that "inappropriate" was the best choice but the so-called correct answer is the one marked x. I don't think neither is right and the "correct" answer is an idiom with which I am very unfamiliar. The expression that I do know is “neither here nor there”



Wiktionary defines it




Having no significance or influence on the question at hand.




The synonyms listed are: beside the point, betwixt and between, irrelevant, unimportant, unrelated, impertinent



But it has been many years since I lived in the UK, and maybe “everywhere and nowhere" is used nowadays. Google tells me it is the title of an English 2011 film, which suggests that the idiom(?) is used but it is not listed in any of the main dictionaries I consulted.



Oxford Dictionaries
Collins Dictionary
Merriam-Webster
WordNet



copy of a multiple choice self-study aid




  1. Is the answer “everywhere and nowhere” in the multiple choice quiz right or wrong? Please provide supporting evidence.










share|improve this question
























  • Who prepared the questions and answers?
    – user240918
    11 hours ago










  • @user240918 I don't know, I think someone from the military academy. There are a few other answers (literally three or four) which smell off to me but the rest are good.
    – Mari-Lou A
    11 hours ago










  • I am UK native, and I have heard the expression "everywhere and nowhere", first of all in the lyrics of a pop song "Hi Ho Silver Lining" by Jeff Beck (1967) You're everywhere and nowhere, babyThat's where you're atGoing down a bumpy hillsideIn your hippy hat (etc). I always heard it used to mean "severely disorganised, unworldly, spaced out, etc". I think this "correct" answer given (by whom?) does not mean "irrelevant", but neither do the others. The other answers are wildly wrong, this one is just, well, weird. Maybe the hundreds of questions are a test of the candidate's determination?
    – Michael Harvey
    10 hours ago










  • @MichaelHarvey the actual number of questions asked on the exam day is 60 so... he's doing his utmost to memorize all the answers. Some questions are really easy but a few are tough. This one sounded weird to me.
    – Mari-Lou A
    10 hours ago










  • As far as I know, in multiple choice questions, one or more questions may have no correct answer!
    – user240918
    10 hours ago















up vote
0
down vote

favorite









up vote
0
down vote

favorite











An Italian student, a young man of twenty, came to me today with a bunch of papers in his bag. It was the questions and answers to a multiple choice English quiz. We're talking hundreds of questions. He needs to pass this exam really well if he has any hope of being accepted in a military academy.



We go through the questions and answers that he is unsure of until we reach this one…




Choose the alternative which is closest in meaning to the word in brackets and which does not change the meaning of the sentence. “The question is [irrelevant]”



[ ] not respectful

[ ] hard to answer

[ ] inappropriate

[ ] very important

[x] everywhere and nowhere




He reasoned that "inappropriate" was the best choice but the so-called correct answer is the one marked x. I don't think neither is right and the "correct" answer is an idiom with which I am very unfamiliar. The expression that I do know is “neither here nor there”



Wiktionary defines it




Having no significance or influence on the question at hand.




The synonyms listed are: beside the point, betwixt and between, irrelevant, unimportant, unrelated, impertinent



But it has been many years since I lived in the UK, and maybe “everywhere and nowhere" is used nowadays. Google tells me it is the title of an English 2011 film, which suggests that the idiom(?) is used but it is not listed in any of the main dictionaries I consulted.



Oxford Dictionaries
Collins Dictionary
Merriam-Webster
WordNet



copy of a multiple choice self-study aid




  1. Is the answer “everywhere and nowhere” in the multiple choice quiz right or wrong? Please provide supporting evidence.










share|improve this question















An Italian student, a young man of twenty, came to me today with a bunch of papers in his bag. It was the questions and answers to a multiple choice English quiz. We're talking hundreds of questions. He needs to pass this exam really well if he has any hope of being accepted in a military academy.



We go through the questions and answers that he is unsure of until we reach this one…




Choose the alternative which is closest in meaning to the word in brackets and which does not change the meaning of the sentence. “The question is [irrelevant]”



[ ] not respectful

[ ] hard to answer

[ ] inappropriate

[ ] very important

[x] everywhere and nowhere




He reasoned that "inappropriate" was the best choice but the so-called correct answer is the one marked x. I don't think neither is right and the "correct" answer is an idiom with which I am very unfamiliar. The expression that I do know is “neither here nor there”



Wiktionary defines it




Having no significance or influence on the question at hand.




The synonyms listed are: beside the point, betwixt and between, irrelevant, unimportant, unrelated, impertinent



But it has been many years since I lived in the UK, and maybe “everywhere and nowhere" is used nowadays. Google tells me it is the title of an English 2011 film, which suggests that the idiom(?) is used but it is not listed in any of the main dictionaries I consulted.



Oxford Dictionaries
Collins Dictionary
Merriam-Webster
WordNet



copy of a multiple choice self-study aid




  1. Is the answer “everywhere and nowhere” in the multiple choice quiz right or wrong? Please provide supporting evidence.







meaning expressions idioms






share|improve this question















share|improve this question













share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited 5 mins ago

























asked 11 hours ago









Mari-Lou A

61.1k54214446




61.1k54214446












  • Who prepared the questions and answers?
    – user240918
    11 hours ago










  • @user240918 I don't know, I think someone from the military academy. There are a few other answers (literally three or four) which smell off to me but the rest are good.
    – Mari-Lou A
    11 hours ago










  • I am UK native, and I have heard the expression "everywhere and nowhere", first of all in the lyrics of a pop song "Hi Ho Silver Lining" by Jeff Beck (1967) You're everywhere and nowhere, babyThat's where you're atGoing down a bumpy hillsideIn your hippy hat (etc). I always heard it used to mean "severely disorganised, unworldly, spaced out, etc". I think this "correct" answer given (by whom?) does not mean "irrelevant", but neither do the others. The other answers are wildly wrong, this one is just, well, weird. Maybe the hundreds of questions are a test of the candidate's determination?
    – Michael Harvey
    10 hours ago










  • @MichaelHarvey the actual number of questions asked on the exam day is 60 so... he's doing his utmost to memorize all the answers. Some questions are really easy but a few are tough. This one sounded weird to me.
    – Mari-Lou A
    10 hours ago










  • As far as I know, in multiple choice questions, one or more questions may have no correct answer!
    – user240918
    10 hours ago




















  • Who prepared the questions and answers?
    – user240918
    11 hours ago










  • @user240918 I don't know, I think someone from the military academy. There are a few other answers (literally three or four) which smell off to me but the rest are good.
    – Mari-Lou A
    11 hours ago










  • I am UK native, and I have heard the expression "everywhere and nowhere", first of all in the lyrics of a pop song "Hi Ho Silver Lining" by Jeff Beck (1967) You're everywhere and nowhere, babyThat's where you're atGoing down a bumpy hillsideIn your hippy hat (etc). I always heard it used to mean "severely disorganised, unworldly, spaced out, etc". I think this "correct" answer given (by whom?) does not mean "irrelevant", but neither do the others. The other answers are wildly wrong, this one is just, well, weird. Maybe the hundreds of questions are a test of the candidate's determination?
    – Michael Harvey
    10 hours ago










  • @MichaelHarvey the actual number of questions asked on the exam day is 60 so... he's doing his utmost to memorize all the answers. Some questions are really easy but a few are tough. This one sounded weird to me.
    – Mari-Lou A
    10 hours ago










  • As far as I know, in multiple choice questions, one or more questions may have no correct answer!
    – user240918
    10 hours ago


















Who prepared the questions and answers?
– user240918
11 hours ago




Who prepared the questions and answers?
– user240918
11 hours ago












@user240918 I don't know, I think someone from the military academy. There are a few other answers (literally three or four) which smell off to me but the rest are good.
– Mari-Lou A
11 hours ago




@user240918 I don't know, I think someone from the military academy. There are a few other answers (literally three or four) which smell off to me but the rest are good.
– Mari-Lou A
11 hours ago












I am UK native, and I have heard the expression "everywhere and nowhere", first of all in the lyrics of a pop song "Hi Ho Silver Lining" by Jeff Beck (1967) You're everywhere and nowhere, babyThat's where you're atGoing down a bumpy hillsideIn your hippy hat (etc). I always heard it used to mean "severely disorganised, unworldly, spaced out, etc". I think this "correct" answer given (by whom?) does not mean "irrelevant", but neither do the others. The other answers are wildly wrong, this one is just, well, weird. Maybe the hundreds of questions are a test of the candidate's determination?
– Michael Harvey
10 hours ago




I am UK native, and I have heard the expression "everywhere and nowhere", first of all in the lyrics of a pop song "Hi Ho Silver Lining" by Jeff Beck (1967) You're everywhere and nowhere, babyThat's where you're atGoing down a bumpy hillsideIn your hippy hat (etc). I always heard it used to mean "severely disorganised, unworldly, spaced out, etc". I think this "correct" answer given (by whom?) does not mean "irrelevant", but neither do the others. The other answers are wildly wrong, this one is just, well, weird. Maybe the hundreds of questions are a test of the candidate's determination?
– Michael Harvey
10 hours ago












@MichaelHarvey the actual number of questions asked on the exam day is 60 so... he's doing his utmost to memorize all the answers. Some questions are really easy but a few are tough. This one sounded weird to me.
– Mari-Lou A
10 hours ago




@MichaelHarvey the actual number of questions asked on the exam day is 60 so... he's doing his utmost to memorize all the answers. Some questions are really easy but a few are tough. This one sounded weird to me.
– Mari-Lou A
10 hours ago












As far as I know, in multiple choice questions, one or more questions may have no correct answer!
– user240918
10 hours ago






As far as I know, in multiple choice questions, one or more questions may have no correct answer!
– user240918
10 hours ago












1 Answer
1






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oldest

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0
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I would have also picked everywhere and nowhere if forced to choose between those options. But I wouldn't have been happy about it.



Without actually looking at a thesaurus, when I hear the word irrelevant I think to myself immaterial, unrelated, not useful, beside the point, off topic, and has no bearing. Only one of those is what Wiktionary lists. Further, I would never associate irrelevant with impertient—so I find that synonym strange. (But that's just based on my personal associations.)



By the process of elimination, I immediately ruled out the first four possible answers. (Unlike the Italian student, I would never associate irrelevant with inappropriate. That word has a negative connotation to it that I don't get from irrelevant.)



That left me only with everywhere and nowhere.



When I hear everywhere and nowhere, I think to myself unhelpful and meaningless. Those are at least close to irrelevant—and certainly closer, in my mind, than any of the other options.



But, as I say, it's more a process of elimination for me than an affirmative statement. (A kind of two-step equivalence.) Everywhere and nowhere is certainly not something that would leap into my mind as meaning irrelevant.





Having now composed my answer (not having wanted to have research affect my subjective response), I see that Merriam-Webster shows the following in its thesaurus for irrelevant:




Phrases Synonymous with IRRELEVANT

beside the point, neither here nor there




I note that neither here nor there has almost the same meaning (or non-meaning) as everywhere and nowhere.






share|improve this answer



















  • 2




    Yes, I mentioned "neither here or there" in my answer. That would have been my choice. But I cannot find "everywhere and nowhere" with that meaning.
    – Mari-Lou A
    10 hours ago











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I would have also picked everywhere and nowhere if forced to choose between those options. But I wouldn't have been happy about it.



Without actually looking at a thesaurus, when I hear the word irrelevant I think to myself immaterial, unrelated, not useful, beside the point, off topic, and has no bearing. Only one of those is what Wiktionary lists. Further, I would never associate irrelevant with impertient—so I find that synonym strange. (But that's just based on my personal associations.)



By the process of elimination, I immediately ruled out the first four possible answers. (Unlike the Italian student, I would never associate irrelevant with inappropriate. That word has a negative connotation to it that I don't get from irrelevant.)



That left me only with everywhere and nowhere.



When I hear everywhere and nowhere, I think to myself unhelpful and meaningless. Those are at least close to irrelevant—and certainly closer, in my mind, than any of the other options.



But, as I say, it's more a process of elimination for me than an affirmative statement. (A kind of two-step equivalence.) Everywhere and nowhere is certainly not something that would leap into my mind as meaning irrelevant.





Having now composed my answer (not having wanted to have research affect my subjective response), I see that Merriam-Webster shows the following in its thesaurus for irrelevant:




Phrases Synonymous with IRRELEVANT

beside the point, neither here nor there




I note that neither here nor there has almost the same meaning (or non-meaning) as everywhere and nowhere.






share|improve this answer



















  • 2




    Yes, I mentioned "neither here or there" in my answer. That would have been my choice. But I cannot find "everywhere and nowhere" with that meaning.
    – Mari-Lou A
    10 hours ago















up vote
0
down vote













I would have also picked everywhere and nowhere if forced to choose between those options. But I wouldn't have been happy about it.



Without actually looking at a thesaurus, when I hear the word irrelevant I think to myself immaterial, unrelated, not useful, beside the point, off topic, and has no bearing. Only one of those is what Wiktionary lists. Further, I would never associate irrelevant with impertient—so I find that synonym strange. (But that's just based on my personal associations.)



By the process of elimination, I immediately ruled out the first four possible answers. (Unlike the Italian student, I would never associate irrelevant with inappropriate. That word has a negative connotation to it that I don't get from irrelevant.)



That left me only with everywhere and nowhere.



When I hear everywhere and nowhere, I think to myself unhelpful and meaningless. Those are at least close to irrelevant—and certainly closer, in my mind, than any of the other options.



But, as I say, it's more a process of elimination for me than an affirmative statement. (A kind of two-step equivalence.) Everywhere and nowhere is certainly not something that would leap into my mind as meaning irrelevant.





Having now composed my answer (not having wanted to have research affect my subjective response), I see that Merriam-Webster shows the following in its thesaurus for irrelevant:




Phrases Synonymous with IRRELEVANT

beside the point, neither here nor there




I note that neither here nor there has almost the same meaning (or non-meaning) as everywhere and nowhere.






share|improve this answer



















  • 2




    Yes, I mentioned "neither here or there" in my answer. That would have been my choice. But I cannot find "everywhere and nowhere" with that meaning.
    – Mari-Lou A
    10 hours ago













up vote
0
down vote










up vote
0
down vote









I would have also picked everywhere and nowhere if forced to choose between those options. But I wouldn't have been happy about it.



Without actually looking at a thesaurus, when I hear the word irrelevant I think to myself immaterial, unrelated, not useful, beside the point, off topic, and has no bearing. Only one of those is what Wiktionary lists. Further, I would never associate irrelevant with impertient—so I find that synonym strange. (But that's just based on my personal associations.)



By the process of elimination, I immediately ruled out the first four possible answers. (Unlike the Italian student, I would never associate irrelevant with inappropriate. That word has a negative connotation to it that I don't get from irrelevant.)



That left me only with everywhere and nowhere.



When I hear everywhere and nowhere, I think to myself unhelpful and meaningless. Those are at least close to irrelevant—and certainly closer, in my mind, than any of the other options.



But, as I say, it's more a process of elimination for me than an affirmative statement. (A kind of two-step equivalence.) Everywhere and nowhere is certainly not something that would leap into my mind as meaning irrelevant.





Having now composed my answer (not having wanted to have research affect my subjective response), I see that Merriam-Webster shows the following in its thesaurus for irrelevant:




Phrases Synonymous with IRRELEVANT

beside the point, neither here nor there




I note that neither here nor there has almost the same meaning (or non-meaning) as everywhere and nowhere.






share|improve this answer














I would have also picked everywhere and nowhere if forced to choose between those options. But I wouldn't have been happy about it.



Without actually looking at a thesaurus, when I hear the word irrelevant I think to myself immaterial, unrelated, not useful, beside the point, off topic, and has no bearing. Only one of those is what Wiktionary lists. Further, I would never associate irrelevant with impertient—so I find that synonym strange. (But that's just based on my personal associations.)



By the process of elimination, I immediately ruled out the first four possible answers. (Unlike the Italian student, I would never associate irrelevant with inappropriate. That word has a negative connotation to it that I don't get from irrelevant.)



That left me only with everywhere and nowhere.



When I hear everywhere and nowhere, I think to myself unhelpful and meaningless. Those are at least close to irrelevant—and certainly closer, in my mind, than any of the other options.



But, as I say, it's more a process of elimination for me than an affirmative statement. (A kind of two-step equivalence.) Everywhere and nowhere is certainly not something that would leap into my mind as meaning irrelevant.





Having now composed my answer (not having wanted to have research affect my subjective response), I see that Merriam-Webster shows the following in its thesaurus for irrelevant:




Phrases Synonymous with IRRELEVANT

beside the point, neither here nor there




I note that neither here nor there has almost the same meaning (or non-meaning) as everywhere and nowhere.







share|improve this answer














share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer








edited 10 hours ago

























answered 10 hours ago









Jason Bassford

15k31941




15k31941








  • 2




    Yes, I mentioned "neither here or there" in my answer. That would have been my choice. But I cannot find "everywhere and nowhere" with that meaning.
    – Mari-Lou A
    10 hours ago














  • 2




    Yes, I mentioned "neither here or there" in my answer. That would have been my choice. But I cannot find "everywhere and nowhere" with that meaning.
    – Mari-Lou A
    10 hours ago








2




2




Yes, I mentioned "neither here or there" in my answer. That would have been my choice. But I cannot find "everywhere and nowhere" with that meaning.
– Mari-Lou A
10 hours ago




Yes, I mentioned "neither here or there" in my answer. That would have been my choice. But I cannot find "everywhere and nowhere" with that meaning.
– Mari-Lou A
10 hours ago


















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