thus

UK/ˈðʌs/US/ˈðʌs/

adverbB2Very common — you will meet it every day · #2,167 of 15,258leans written

Thus means in this way, and so. Thus far, thus it was, and thus we conclude.

It is formal and slightly old-fashioned, and in most writing so or therefore does the job better. Thus far means up to now. It is one of the oldest words in the language and has barely changed shape in a thousand years.

Definitions of thus

1adverbthusIn this way; and so.B2
“He was the oldest son and thus the heir to the family business.”

thus is a manner.

Where it comes from

Old English thus means in this way, from a Germanic root. It has kept its shape for over a thousand years.

Proto-West Germanic
*þus — so, thus
Old English
þus — thus, in this way, as follows, in this manner, to this extent
Middle English
thus
English, today
thus

From Middle English thus, þus, from Old English þus (“thus, in this way, as follows, in this manner, to this extent”), from Proto-West Germanic þus (“so, thus”), perhaps originally from a variant of the instrumental form of this, related to Old English þȳs (“by this, with this”), Old Saxon thius (“by this, with this”). Cognate with Scots thus (“thus”), frr aldoz, stq dus, düs (“thus”), West Frisian dus (“thus”), Dutch dus (“thus, so”), Middle High German dus (“thus, as follows”). Compare also Dutch zus (“thus, hence”), Low German sus (“thus, hence”), Middle High German sus (“thus, hence”), a similar formation from the stem of *swā.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practise this word

thus in the wild

The term is often thought to mean either "one who has thus gone", "one who has thus come", or sometimes "one who has thus not gone".
Tathāgata
Signals have thus, sometimes, been communicated from post to post, along a frontier line of several hundred miles in length.
The Mysteries of Udolpho· Ann Ward Radcliffe
Thus there were eight bullocks, four mules and (unlucky number) thirteen men engaged.
Bidwell's Travels, from Wall Street to London Prison: Fifteen Years in Solitude· Austin Bidwell
Thus, father, brother, lover would be all disposed of, the lands and lordship yours, and the lady almost at your mercy likewise.
Forest Days: A Romance of Old Times· G. P. R. James
Thus we have the numerous commons of Kent, Surrey, and other counties.
The English Peasantry and the Enclosure of Common Fields· Gilbert Slater

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

From Project Gutenberg, public domain. These sentences are from real books, shown to illustrate the word at work.

← Vocabulary