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As per the Cambridge Dictionary, 'whence' is a more curt form of 'from where'.

Yet, the very first usage examples reads:

It has been returned to the shop from whence it came.

(emphasis mine)

Indeed, looking at this older question, it is sometimes acceptable to combine 'whence' with an additional 'from'. (Pretty sure I have seen this usage in a different Shakespeare text than the one cited, so I have no reason to doubt this.)

The big question is now of course: when?

That is, are there

  • cases where using an additional 'from' would definitely be out of place
  • cases where using an additional 'from' is definitely "better"

?

(Presumably there must be a wide array of cases where it does not matter either way - no need to specifically mention these, unless of course those were all the cases, without exception.)

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    I assume that you know that nobody ever uses the term "whence" in modern language? "From whence it came" is used to invoke the idea of some epic i.e. smiting a dragon or some such. Using it without deliberately putting it into some fairytale context would make you sound very odd indeed
    – roganjosh
    Commented Sep 23 at 16:25
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    whence is just from where. People sometimes do use it. So, the previous comment is mistaken. It is also used in writing sometimes.
    – Lambie
    Commented Sep 23 at 16:32
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    Note that Cambridge Dictionary does not call 'whence' curt. Curt does not mean shortened, but a negative, clipped, snotty form of communication. If you ask me for a small favor and I say "No I won't" without explanation, that's curt.
    – Yosef Baskin
    Commented Sep 24 at 15:21
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    This question is similar to: Why need 'from' in "from whence his large yellow eyes glowed in the darkness"?. If you believe it’s different, please edit the question, make it clear how it’s different and/or how the answers on that question are not helpful for your problem.
    – Stuart F
    Commented Sep 25 at 16:39
  • @StuartF: That question is linked and motivated this one precisely because it provides no hint as to how to distinguish the two valid forms (with/-out preceeding 'from'). That I am interested in this distinction is even bolded in my question body. ... Note: It may well be that the correct answer is: "There is no difference" - but I do not know that and it is a different answer to whether "either form may occur" (possibly in different tones/voices/whathaveyou). Compare: "the prostitute" and "that hoe" - same meaning, both can be used, but they are very much not arbitrarly exchangable.
    – Zsar
    Commented Oct 17 at 11:17

2 Answers 2

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You could use from whence when referring to a location and omit "from" when whence is being used abstractly, i.e. when the "place" is not a physical place but an origin or source.

The countries from whence they emigrated were being torn apart by civil war.

Comparing the first and second equations n(m2-n2) = p (m2-p2) whence we have (n-p)m2 = n3-p3

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  • Have you any evidence for this rule, because I've never heard of it.
    – Stuart F
    Commented Sep 25 at 16:39
  • I'm describing how the word has been used when I've seen it used, which happens fairly often in academic writing, where it's not a rarity. When the meaning is locative, from is an option (often used but not mandated though I'd say that the locative without "from" is obsolescent); with the abstract sense "from" is eschewed.
    – TimR
    Commented Sep 25 at 16:47
  • For example: books.google.com/ngrams/… and books.google.com/ngrams/…
    – TimR
    Commented Sep 25 at 16:57
  • @TimR : I almost wrote the "it does not matter" answer, now that no new input has arrived for a few days, but I stumbled over your comments down here, and faltered: In the context of natural languages, it is of course very valid to have different answers for different contexts, and I think "the" correct answer would have to contain three segments: in general no difference, among Shakespeare connoisseurs always 'from whence', in academic usage your rule. ... If you'd like to expand your answer to this scope, I should rather accept yours than write my own.
    – Zsar
    Commented Nov 19 at 16:08
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Whence is a fossil word that primarily survives as the phrase "from whence it came". In modern English, I would only use whence in that specific phrase, and only to evoke an archaic or fantasy feeling. In that sense, the answer is to always use "from whence".

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    A Google Ngrams search for whence doesn't appear to reveal any obvious differences in usage between whence and from whence, either in early or modern sources.
    – Kate Bunting
    Commented Sep 23 at 18:06
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    People opinions differ on what others might say. And this answer is an opinion.
    – Lambie
    Commented Sep 23 at 18:18
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    This doesn't do much to answer the actual question; it answers a question that wasn't asked. It would probably be better as a comment, but its point has already been covered in the comments. Also: I don't know that this answer is accurate. There are definitely times that it's okay to drop the "from" ("Whence this sudden change of heart?"); I'm just not able to articulate whether there's any pattern to them.
    – Andy Bonner
    Commented Sep 23 at 19:32
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    @Lambie yeah, I phrased it as "I would..." instead of a hard "it is only used..." for that reason. However, I do think it's a reasonable recommendation to be careful about whence. One common stylistic mistake english learners make is overusing archaic or vernacular phrases in the wrong context. "I'm working on the API, whence users' requests are received" sounds very silly.
    – Kaia
    Commented Sep 23 at 19:56
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    I think "fossil" overstates the case but would agree that 99% of native speakers do not have "whence" and "thence" in their daily working vocabulary.
    – TimR
    Commented Sep 25 at 12:14

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