whence

[ wens, hwens ]

See synonyms for whence on Thesaurus.com

adverb

from what place?: Whence comest thou?
from what source, origin, or cause?: Whence has he wisdom?

conjunction

from what place, source, cause, etc.: He told whence he came.

Origin of whence

1250–1300; Middle English whennes, whannes, equivalent to whanne (by syncope from Old English hwanone whence) + -s-s¹

usage note For whence

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.

Words that may be confused with whence

1. hence, hither, thence, thither, whence , whither, yon (see usage note at the current entry)
2. when, whence

Words Nearby whence

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use whence in a sentence

And where was this magical land of Khorasan, whence the conquerors would come?
ISIS Targets Afghanistan Just as the U.S. Quits | Sami Yousafzai, Christopher Dickey | December 19, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Then the man got dressed, got back on his bicycle and rode off from whence he came.
Jamie Lee Curtis and Naomi Foner on What It Means to Be ‘Very Good Girls’ | Jamie Lee Curtis | July 25, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
It is no longer exclusively the domain of “the ghetto” from whence it came.
‘Because the Internet’ Review: Childish Gambino Is Hip-Hop’s Perennial Outsider | Rawiya Kameir | December 10, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
Egyptians leave the country to seek work elsewhere, whence they can send remittances home.
Egypt's Ticking Population Bomb | David Frum | May 3, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
So, like a good troll, please go back under the bridge from whence you came.
'Barack O'Fraudo' | Justin Green | November 20, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST

The Colonel and his two friends rode back towards the south, from whence they came.
The Courier of the Ozarks | Byron A. Dunn
O wicked presumption, whence camest thou to cover the earth with thy malice, and deceitfulness?
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version | Various
These are obtained easily, whence follow the sinister reports that they give your Majesty, to the harm of the public welfare.
The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898, Volume XX, 1621-1624 | Various
Once he suddenly found himself in the road driving a small flock of goats, whose he knew not, nor whence he got them.
Ramona | Helen Hunt Jackson
Several sentinels drew around the vehicle, with demands whence it came, and what was the object of the persons it contained.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4 | Jane Porter

British Dictionary definitions for whence

whence

/ (wɛns) archaic, or formal /

adverb

from what place, cause, or origin?

pronoun

(subordinating) from what place, cause, or origin

Origin of whence

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

usage For whence

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

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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