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What is the difference between where and whence?

where | whence |

As conjunctions the difference between where and whence

is that where is while on the contrary; although; whereas while whence is used for introducing the result of a fact that has just been stated

As adverbs the difference between where and whence

is that where is used interrogatively, in either a direct or indirect question At what place; to what place; what place while whence is from where; from which place or source.

As a pronoun where

is the place in which.

As a noun where

is the place in which something happens.

where

English

Conjunction

(English Conjunctions)
  • While on the contrary; although; whereas.
  • * (William Shakespeare)
    • And flight and die is death destroying death; / Where fearing dying pays death servile breath.
  • * July 18 2012 , Scott Tobias, AV Club The Dark Knight Rises [http://www.avclub.com/articles/the-dark-knight-rises-review-batman,82624/]
    • Where the Joker preys on our fears of random, irrational acts of terror, Bane has an all-consuming, dictatorial agenda that’s more stable and permanent, a New World Order that’s been planned out with the precision of a military coup.
  • * {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-14, author=(Jonathan Freedland)
    • , volume=189, issue=1, page=18, magazine=(The Guardian Weekly) , title= Obama's once hip brand is now tainted , passage=Now we are liberal with our innermost secrets, spraying them into the public ether with a generosity our forebears could not have imagined. Where we once sent love letters in a sealed envelope, or stuck photographs of our children in a family album, now such private material is despatched to servers and clouds operated by people we don't know and will never meet.}}
  • At or in which place or situation.
  • * {{quote-magazine, year=2013, month=July-August, author=(Henry Petroski)
    • , title= Geothermal Energy , volume=101, issue=4, magazine=(American Scientist) , passage=Energy has seldom been found where we need it when we want it. Ancient nomads, wishing to ward off the evening chill and enjoy a meal around a campfire, had to collect wood and then spend time and effort coaxing the heat of friction out from between sticks to kindle a flame. With more settled people, animals were harnessed to capstans or caged in treadmills to turn grist into meal.}}
  • To which place or situation.
  • Wherever.
  • (legal) In a position, case, etc., in which.

    • Adverb

    (-)
  • At what place; to what place; what place.
    • Where are you?
    Where are you going?
    Where did you come from?
  • In what situation.
    • Where would we be without our parents?

    Pronoun

    (English Pronouns)
  • The place in which.
    • He lives within five miles of where he was born.

    Noun

    (-)
  • The place in which something happens.
    • A good article will cover the who, the what, the when, the where , the why and the how.
    Finding the nymph asleep in secret where . — Spenser.

    Derived terms

    * anywhere * elsewhere * everywhere * every which where * whereabouts * whereafter * whereagainst * wherealong * whereas * whereat * whereby * wherefore * wherefrom * wherein * whereinto * where it's at * whereness * wherenot * whereon * whereof * whereover * wheresoever * wherethan * wherethrough * whereto * wheretoward * whereunder * whereuntil * whereunto * whereupon * wherever * wherewith * wherewithin * wherewithal

    Statistics

    *

    Anagrams

    * 100 English basic words English interrogative adverbs English location adverbs English terms with homophones 1000 English basic words

    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)

    Related terms

    * (l) * (l) * (l) * (l) * (l) * (l) English interrogative adverbs