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View synonyms for whence

whence

[ wens, hwens ]

adverb

  1. from what place?:

    Whence comest thou?

  2. from what source, origin, or cause?:

    Whence has he wisdom?



conjunction

  1. from what place, source, cause, etc.:

    He told whence he came.

whence

/ wɛns /

adverb

  1. from what place, cause, or origin?
“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


pronoun

  1. subordinating from what place, cause, or origin
“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
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Usage Note

Although sometimes criticized as redundant on the grounds that “from” is implied by the word whence, the idiom from whence is old in the language, well established, and standard. Among its users are the King James Bible, Shakespeare, Dryden, and Dickens: Hilary finally settled in Paris, from whence she bombarded us with letters, postcards, and sketches. From thence, a parallel construction, occurs infrequently.
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Usage

The expression from whence should be avoided, since whence already means from which place: the tradition whence (not from whence ) such ideas flowed
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Word History and Origins

Origin of whence1

1250–1300; Middle English whennes, whannes, equivalent to whanne (by syncope from Old English hwanone whence) + -s -s 1
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Word History and Origins

Origin of whence1

C13 whannes, adverbial genitive of Old English hwanon; related to Old Frisian hwana, Old High German hwanan
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Example Sentences

And where was this magical land of Khorasan, whence the conquerors would come?

Then the man got dressed, got back on his bicycle and rode off from whence he came.

It is no longer exclusively the domain of “the ghetto” from whence it came.

Egyptians leave the country to seek work elsewhere, whence they can send remittances home.

So, like a good troll, please go back under the bridge from whence you came.

The Colonel and his two friends rode back towards the south, from whence they came.

O wicked presumption, whence camest thou to cover the earth with thy malice, and deceitfulness?

These are obtained easily, whence follow the sinister reports that they give your Majesty, to the harm of the public welfare.

Once he suddenly found himself in the road driving a small flock of goats, whose he knew not, nor whence he got them.

Several sentinels drew around the vehicle, with demands whence it came, and what was the object of the persons it contained.

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