Hence, thence, and whence are formal words that express different connections involving results, places, sources, or time.
Hence most commonly means for this reason or as a result. It connects a fact with its consequence: “The shop was closed; hence, we returned home.” This use appears mainly in formal speech and writing.
Hence can also mean from now when it follows a period of time. For example, “The new term will begin a month hence” means that it will begin a month from now.
Thence means from that place. It often describes the next stage of a journey: “We flew to Paris and traveled thence to Lyon.” It is uncommon in everyday conversation; most speakers would say from there.
Whence means from where or from which source. It can introduce either a direct or indirect question: “Whence did the signal come?” or “They could not discover whence the signal came.” Because whence already includes the idea of from, the phrase from whence is usually unnecessary in edited modern English, although it has a long history of use.
- Choose hence for a consequence or a future point measured from now.
- Choose thence for movement from a previously mentioned place.
- Choose whence when asking or stating where something originated.