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ergo

[ur-goh, er-goh]
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conjunction, adverb
  1. therefore.
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Origin of ergo

Borrowed into English from Latin around 1350–1400

ergo-1

  1. a combining form meaning “work”: ergograph.
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Also especially before a vowel, erg-.

Origin of ergo-1

combining form representing Greek érgon

ergo-2

  1. a combining form of ergot: ergotoxine.
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Origin of ergo-2

From French

post hoc, ergo propter hoc

[pohst hohk, er-goh prohp-ter hohk; English pohst hok, ur-goh prop-ter hok er-goh]
Latin.
  1. after this, therefore because of it: a formula designating an error in logic that accepts as a cause something that merely occurred earlier in time.
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cogito, ergo sum

[koh-gi-toh er-goh soo m; English koj-i-toh ur-goh suhm, er-goh]
Latin.
  1. I think, therefore I am (stated by Descartes as the first principle in resolving universal doubt).
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Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

accordinglyconsequentlyhencesothenthereforethereuponthusthusly

Examples from the Web for ergo

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • Ergo, again, ours must infallibly top the markets of the world.

  • There had been an obscure presentiment of 'cognito, ergo sum' more than 2000 years previously.

    Meno

    Plato

  • Then he is a father, and he is yours; ergo, he is your father, and the puppies are your brothers.

  • What was I before that instant I suddenly reasoned cogito, ergo sum?

    Cogito, Ergo Sum

    John Foster West

  • She had not spoken to him—ergo, the emotion of encountering him was too great for her.

    In Direst Peril

    David Christie Murray

British Dictionary definitions for ergo

ergo1

sentence connector
  1. therefore; hence
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Word Origin

C14: from Latin: therefore

ergo2

noun
  1. informal short for ergometer (def. 2)
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cogito, ergo sum

  1. I think, therefore I am; the basis of Descartes' philosophy
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for ergo

c.1400, from Latin ergo "therefore, in consequence of," possibly from *ex rogo "from the direction," from ex "out of" (see ex-) + root of regere "to guide" (see regal).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
ergo in Medicine

ergo-

pref.
  1. Work:ergometer.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
ergo in Culture

ergo

[(er-goh, ur-goh)]

Latin word meaning “therefore”; usually used to show a logical conclusion: “Birds are warm-blooded animals, and reptiles are cold-blooded animals; ergo, no bird is a reptile.”

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The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.