Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[learner1]

Hello,

Do these expressions like: so, therefore, hence, thus, consequently, etc all have the same meaning and interchangeable? e.g.

"He was caught cheating in the exam, therefore/hence/thus/consequently/so he failed it."

Many thanks.

[asterix]

Yes, they are pretty much interchangeable, in most cases, with very little variation in meaning.

[learner1]

[wintersweet]

I believe asterix means "there are only tiny differences" in the words' meaning.

The main difference is how formal they are.

"Consequently" and "therefore" are fairly formal. "Hence" and "thus" are very formal. ("Hence" is actually very old-fashioned, and is almost never spoken.)
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wintersweet

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[learner1]

Hello,
Thank you very much for your clear explanation, wintersweet.