 3 definitions found
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
whence
adverb: from what place or origin or source; "whence did he come?";
"whence comes this splendid feast?"; "sketches the
lawless society whence the ballads sprang"-DeLancey
Ferguson [syn: {wherefrom}]
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Whence \Whence\, adverb [OE. whennes, whens (with adverbial s,
properly a genitive ending; -- see {-wards}), also whenne,
whanene, AS. hwanan, hwanon, hwonan, hwanone; akin to D.
when. See {When}, and cf. {Hence}, {Thence}.]
1. From what place; hence, from what or which source, origin,
antecedent, premise, or the like; how; -- used
interrogatively.
Whence hath this man this wisdom? --Matt. xiii.
54.
Whence and what art thou? --Milton.
2. From what or which place, source, material, cause, etc.;
the place, source, etc., from which; -- used relatively.
Grateful to acknowledge whence his good
Descends. --Milton.
Note: All the words of this class, whence, where, whither,
whereabouts, etc., are occasionally used as pronouns by
a harsh construction.
O, how unlike the place from whence they fell?
--Milton.
Note: From whence, though a pleonasm, is fully authorized by
the use of good writers.
From whence come wars and fightings among you?
--James iv. 1.
Of whence, also a pleonasm, has become
obsolete.
From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:
42 Moby Thesaurus words for "whence":
accordingly, away, because of that, because of this, consequently,
derivation, ergo, for that, for that cause, for that reason,
for this cause, for this reason, for which reason, forth, fountain,
hence, hereat, inception, off, on that account, on that ground,
on this account, origin, out, propter hoc, provenance, provenience,
root, then, thence, thereat, therefor, therefore, therefrom,
thereof, thus, thusly, thuswise, well, wellspring, wherefore,
wherefrom
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