at any rate

used to indicate that a statement explains or supports a previous statement; "Anyhow, he is dead now"; "I think they''re asleep; anyhow, they''re quiet"; "I don''t know what happened to it; anyway, it''s gone"; "anyway, there is another factor to consider"; "I don''t know how it started; in any case, there was a brief scuffle"; "in any event, the government faced a serious protest"; "but at any rate he got a knighthood for it"

if nothing else (`leastwise'' is informal and `leastways'' is colloquial); "at least he survived"; "they felt--at any rate Jim felt--relieved though still wary"; "the influence of economists--or at any rate of economics--is far-reaching"