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Then vs Whence - What's the difference?

then | whence |

As adverbs the difference between then and whence

is that then is (label) at that time while whence is from where; from which place or source.

As conjunctions the difference between then and whence

is that then is while whence is (literary|poetic) (used for introducing the result of a fact that has just been stated).

As an adjective then

is being so at that time.

As a noun then

is that time.

then

English

Adverb

(-)
  • (label) At that time.
  • :
  • *Bible, (w) xii. 6
  • *:And the Canaanite was then in the land.
  • *
  • , title=(The Celebrity), chapter=1 , passage=In the old days, to my commonplace and unobserving mind, he gave no evidences of genius whatsoever. He never read me any of his manuscripts, […], and therefore my lack of detection of his promise may in some degree be pardoned. But he had then none of the oddities and mannerisms which I hold to be inseparable from genius, and which struck my attention in after days when I came in contact with the Celebrity.}}
  • (label) Soon afterward.
  • :
  • :
  • *Bible, (w) v. 24
  • *:First be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.
  • *
  • , title= Mr. Pratt's Patients, chapter=1 , passage=Then' there came a reg'lar terror of a sou'wester same as you don't get one summer in a thousand, and blowed the shanty flat and ripped about half of the weir poles out of the sand. We spent consider'ble money getting 'em reset, and ' then a swordfish got into the pound and tore the nets all to slathers, right in the middle of the squiteague season.}}
  • (label) Next in order; in addition.
  • :
  • *
  • , title=(The Celebrity), chapter=5 , passage=Then came a maid with hand-bag and shawls, and after her a tall young lady. She stood for a moment holding her skirt above the grimy steps, with something of the stately pose which Richter has given his Queen Louise on the stairway, and the light of the reflector fell full upon her.}}
  • *{{quote-magazine, date=2013-07-19, author=(Peter Wilby)
  • , volume=189, issue=6, page=30, magazine=(The Guardian Weekly) , title= Finland spreads word on schools , passage=Imagine a country where children do nothing but play until they start compulsory schooling at age seven. Then , without exception, they attend comprehensives until the age of 16. Charging school fees is illegal, and so is sorting pupils into ability groups by streaming or setting.}}
  • (label) In that case.
  • :
  • :
  • :
  • (label) At the same time; on the other hand.
  • :
  • (label) At the time that; when.
  • *1485 , Sir (Thomas Malory), (w, Le Morte d'Arthur)'', Book I.23, reprinted 1817, Sir Thomas Malory, (William Caxton), ''Morte d'Arthur: The Byrth, Lyf, and Actes of Kyng Arthur , Volume 1, page 37:
  • *:Than the knyght sawe hym lye soo on the ground, he alyght and was passynge heuy, for he wende he had slayne hym.
  • Used to contradict an assertion.
  • *2001 , (Eric Malpass), At the Height of the Moon , page 28,
  • *:‘She says Indian elephants are tidgy little things.’ ¶ ‘They?re not then .’ Emma was getting heated. ‘They?re –’ ¶ ‘Emma!’ said Jenny sharply. The child subsided.
  • Synonyms

    * (soon afterward) and then, and so, subsequently, so * (next in order) and then

    Adjective

    (-)
  • being so at that time
  • See also

    * by then * just then * now and then * there and then * until then

    Noun

    (head)
  • That time
  • It will be finished before then .

    Conjunction

    (head)
  • Statistics

    *

    Anagrams

    *

    whence

    English

    Adverb

    (-)
  • From where; from which place or source.
  • Whence came I?
    "Pork" comes from French, whence we get most of our modern cooking terms.
  • * 1818 , (Mary Shelley), , Chapter 4:
  • Whence , I often asked myself, did the principle of life proceed?
  • * 1898 , , Chapter 3:
  • At first I could not tell what this new sound was, nor whence it came, and now it seemed a little noise close by, and now a great noise in the distance. And then it grew nearer and more defined, and in a moment I knew it was the sound of voices talking.
  • *
  • *
  • Usage notes

    * This word is uncommon in modern usage; from where'' is now usually substituted (as in the example sentence: ''Where did I come from?'' or ''From where did I come? ). It is now chiefly encountered in older works, or in poetic or literary writing. * From whence has a strong literary precedent, appearing in Shakespeare and the King James Bible as well as in the writings of numerous Victorian-era writers. In recent times, however, it has been criticized as redundant by usage commentators.

    Conjunction

    (English Conjunctions)
  • (literary, poetic) (used for introducing the result of a fact that has just been stated)
  • The work is slow and dangerous, whence the high costs.
    I scored more than you in the exam, whence we can conclude that I am better at the subject than you are.

    Antonyms

    * (l)