'Thence' means 'from that place' — and by extension 'from that fact', 'and therefore from there'. It belongs to a small old family of direction words: here / hither (to here) / hence (from here), and there / thither (to there) / thence (from there).

'Thence'「thence」 means意思是 'from that place'「從那個地方」 — and by extension而延伸出去 'from that fact'「從那個事實」、'and therefore from there'「所以從那裡」。It它 belongs to屬於 a small old family of direction words一個古老的方向詞小家族：here / hither (to here)「here」/「hither」（往這裡）/ hence (from here)「hence」（從這裡），and和 there / thither (to there)「there」/「thither」（往那裡） / thence (from there)「thence」（從那裡）。

English used to keep 'to' and 'from' inside the word itself; now we just say 'from there' and let the preposition do the work. So you will meet it mainly in travel writing, old books, legal documents and formal accounts of journeys: 'We sailed to Lisbon, and thence to Madeira.' Notice it does the job of 'and from there', in one word, without repeating the place name — that neatness is why writers still like it.

English英文 used to keep以前會把 'to' and 'from'「to」和「from」的意思 inside the word itself放進詞本身裡，now現在 we just say我們就直接說 'from there'「from there」 and而 let the preposition do the work讓介系詞去做這件事。So所以 you will meet it你會遇到它 mainly主要 in travel writing, old books, legal documents and formal accounts of journeys在遊記、舊書、法律文件、和正式的旅程記述裡：'We sailed to Lisbon, and thence to Madeira.'「我們航行到里斯本，然後從那裡又到馬德拉。」Notice留意 it它 does the job of做的正是 'and from there'「而從那裡」這件事的工作，in one word只用一個字，without repeating the place name不用再說一次地名 — that neatness這種簡潔 is why writers still like it就是作家還喜歡用它的原因。

The second use is logical rather than geographical: 'from that fact it follows'. 'The lock was broken, and thence the police concluded a burglary.' Here it is close to 'hence' or 'therefore', though this use is rarer today and can sound stiff.

The second use第二種用法 is是 logical rather than geographical邏輯上的、不是地理上的：'from that fact it follows'「從那個事實可以推出」。'The lock was broken, and thence the police concluded a burglary.'「鎖被撬壞了，警方因此判斷是闖空門」。Here在這裡 it它 is close to接近 'hence' or 'therefore'「hence」或「therefore」，though不過 this use這種用法 is rarer today如今比較少見 and而 can sound stiff可能顯得生硬。

Be clear with your students: nobody says 'thence' in conversation in 2026. It is a reading word. Know it so that a nineteenth-century novel or a property deed does not stop you; write 'from there' yourself.

Be clear要跟學生講清楚 with your students：nobody says沒有人會說 'thence'「thence」 in conversation in 2026在2026年的對話裡。It它 is是 a reading word一個只在書面上出現的詞。Know it了解它就好 so that這樣 a nineteenth-century novel or a property deed十九世紀的小說或地契 does not stop you才不會讓你卡住；write寫的時候 'from there'「from there」 yourself自己就用這個。