Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- adv. In this manner: Lay the pieces out thus. See Usage Note at thusly.
- adv. To a stated degree or extent; so.
- adv. Therefore; consequently: Thus it was necessary for me to resign.
- adv. For example: Few of the nation's largest cities are state capitals; thus neither New York nor Chicago is the seat of its state's government.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- Of manner or state: In this way (referring to something present or under consideration); in the manner or state now-being indicated: as, one may often see gardens arranged thus or thus.
- In the manner just indicated (pointing to something that has just been said, done, or referred to).
- In the state or manner now to be indicated (pointing to something immediately following).
- Of cause: Consequently; accordingly; so; things being so; hence (pointing to something that follows as an effect).
- Of degree or quality: To this extent or proportion; so.
- n. Frankincense; either olibanum or the turpentine which concretes on the trunks of the trees yielding turpentine.
Wiktionary
- adv. As a result.
- adv. In this way or manner.
- n. alternative spelling of thuris.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. The commoner kind of frankincense, or that obtained from the Norway spruce, the long-leaved pine, and other conifers.
- adv. In this or that manner; on this wise.
- adv. To this degree or extent; so far; so.
WordNet 3.0
- adv. in the way indicated
- adv. (used to introduce a logical conclusion) from that fact or reason or as a result
- n. an aromatic gum resin obtained from various Arabian or East African trees; formerly valued for worship and for embalming and fumigation
Etymologies
- Middle English, from Old English; see to- in Indo-European roots.
Examples
“Not thus he appeared -- assuredly not _thus_ -- in the vivacity of his waking hours.”
“V. i.306 (249,3) [but to read his right wits, is to read thus] Perhaps so, -- _but to read his_ wits right _is to read thus_.”
“IV. i.1 (427,1) Yet better thus, and known to be contemn'd] The meaning is, _'Tis better_ to be _thus contemned, and_ known _to yourself_ to be contemned.”
“The term thus points to the deeper truth, which is that in order to have integrated progress as a country, we need to evolve on all levels and with as many people as possible.”
“He had not said a word thus far, and she wondered when he was going to say something, Thou art beautiful, O my love as Tirzah, something, the joints of thy thighs are like jewels, anything at all.”
“A history of the adjectival force of the term thus approximates a history of those qualities of inaccessibility, power, authority, and goodness which have attended the idea of God.”
“The term thus used becomes so broad and vague when cut off from its period moorings that it loses all useful - ness for concrete literary study.”
“The port director then permitted him to execute the form with the title thus altered and when this was done he noticed that a copy of the form had been made when a sheet of carbon paper, through an inadvertence, had been inserted in the pad under the first sheet.”
“And those who heard what he said were of one mind on this point, and the title thus given to Apolinaria by the man who loved her, was, ere long, the one by which she became known to all -- La Beata (1).”
“The majority of scholars seem to interpret the term thus, as did in a way the old Greek translators, who used carpoi, "fruits.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘thus’.
qroqqa One of only two(?) minimal pairs contrasting /ð/ and /θ/ initially: /ðʌs/ "so" ~ /θʌs/ "incense" (what a thurifer carries in a thurible). The other initial pair is 'thou'; final contrasts occur in 'mouth' (n. and v.) and possibly 'withe'/'with'. Jun 10, 2009
bilby He might end up belected. Aug 16, 2008
chained_bear Hell, I'd vote for you to get into a reflected office. Aug 15, 2008
reesetee Or selected office, even. Aug 15, 2008
yarb If you're running for unelected office, I'll vote for you. Aug 15, 2008
chained_bear Whichbe: why not? I'd vote for you. Aug 15, 2008
whichbe What's wrong with being pretentious? I'm not running for elected office. Aug 15, 2008
reesetee And thus we continue to discuss thus. Aug 15, 2008
super-logos My tea is better than your grand instrument! *patting himself on his back with self-congratulatory smugness* Aug 15, 2008
milosrdenstvi Pardon me, but I'm off to play the grand piano. Aug 15, 2008
super-logos "Sic" is the Latin word for "thus." I think "thus" is pretentious. Now, if you will excuse me, I am going to have High Tea with the Archbishop of Canterbury. Aug 15, 2008
milosrdenstvi viz. is awesome also, but useful only in writing. This is commonplace and ordinary. Thus is not used by everybody, and serves a cool purpose. IMO. Aug 15, 2008
yarb viz. doesn't mean the same thing, though.
n.b. I think thus is a dull word. Aug 15, 2008
super-logos I prefer the term, viz., which is a Latin abbreviation for videlicet, as in, clearly, thusly, to wit, etc. Aug 15, 2008
chained_bear Do you feel the same way about this? Or just thus? Aug 15, 2008
whichbe This word is adorable and I love it. Aug 15, 2008
chained_bear I guess the "boring" part of my list title should be changed to something more appropriately descriptive. They're words that are too dull to list on Wordie, was the thinking. Like articles, or prepositions, or really dull (though now I think about it, they're probably all Anglo-Saxon and therefore really awesomely old) nouns. Or words like homosexuality which for some reason had been orphaned, and someone suggested it was because the word was too boring to list. Yadda yadda. Thus we find ourselves here discussing thus. Aug 15, 2008
reesetee Thus we continue to use the word. :-) Aug 15, 2008
chained_bear I like the thickness of the th- sound at the beginning, a holdover from Old English. :) Niiice. Aug 15, 2008
milosrdenstvi One of the most useful words in the language. Aug 15, 2008