whence

American  

[hwens, wens] / ʰwɛns, wɛns /

adverb

1. from what place?.

   Whence comest thou?

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

   Whence has he wisdom?

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conjunction

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

   He told whence he came.

whence British  

/ wɛns /

adverb

1. from what place, cause, or origin?

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pronoun

1. (subordinating) from what place, cause, or origin

Usage

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.

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

Etymology

Origin of whence

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

Explanation

Use the adverb whence as an old-fashioned way to say "from which" or "from where." If you found a hundred dollar bill on the ground, you might ask, "Whence did this money come?" Not many people use the word whence these days — you're most likely to hear it in a Shakespeare play or if a speaker is trying to sound especially formal. Many people say, "from whence," as in "Throw that fish back in the sea from whence it came," although strictly speaking the "from" is unnecessary. Instead, a dinner party guest could ask, "Whence came this delicious fish?"

Example Sentences

He is one of the most prominent of the next generation of tabla players poised to take the next step for their instrument, begging the question of whence tabla.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 12, 2025

You may be wondering just whence that staggering valuation arises, then.

From Slate • Mar. 28, 2024

Downes suspects Bruiser’s ilk made their way back east into the North Cascades from whence they hail.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 7, 2023

In fact, the power of the Franks was always viewed by the Greeks and Romans with a jealous eye, whence the Greek proverb ‘Have the Frank for your friend, but not for your neighbor.’

From Textbooks • Apr. 19, 2023

Thus our simple Ideas are clear, when they are such as the Objects themselves, from whence they were taken, did, in a well-ordered Sensation or Perception, present them…

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton