wherein / in what
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in what
Introduces a question and asks about the place, state, or content of something. It means 'in what?'.
Worin besteht eigentlich der Unterschied zwischen den beiden Angeboten?
In what exactly does the difference between the two offers consist?
wherein
Introduces a relative clause and refers to a thing or place that was mentioned before. It means 'in which'.
Das ist die Schachtel, worin ich die alten Briefe aufbewahre.
That is the box wherein I keep the old letters.
'Worin' (wherein/in what) is a pronominal adverb and is made up of 'wo-' and the preposition 'in'. The syllable 'wo-' replaces a thing or a situation.
Worin liegt der Sinn dieser Übung?
What is the point of this exercise?
'Worin' (wherein/in what) has two main functions. It can introduce a question ('in what?') or a relative clause that refers to a previously mentioned thing ('in which').
Worin soll ich die Suppe servieren?
In what should I serve the soup?
As a question word, 'worin' (in what) often appears in fixed expressions to ask about the core of a problem or topic. Typical examples are: 'Worin besteht das Problem?' (What is the problem?), 'Worin liegt der Vorteil?' (What is the advantage?), or 'Worin siehst du die Schwierigkeit?' (Where do you see the difficulty?).
Worin besteht der Hauptunterschied zwischen den beiden Modellen?
In what does the main difference between the two models consist?
When 'worin' (wherein) introduces a relative clause, it tends to belong to written language or a formal style. It is used less often in everyday speech.
Er schrieb einen Bericht, worin er alle Details erklärte.
He wrote a report wherein he explained all the details.
