henceforth

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English hennes-forth, also written hennes forth,^[2][3][4] a compound of hennes (“hence”) and forth, the ancestors of hence and forth.^[2][5][6][7] It took the place of the earlier henne-forth,^[2][6][5] which goes back to late Old English heonon forð, from heonan (“hence”) and forþ (“forth”).^[2][6][8] The OED also compares the earlier hethenforth.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

From this time on, from now onwards: before 1375, in William of Palerne ("Ȝe may mete eft dernli hennes-forþ eche day").^[5][2] Etymonline dates the word to the late 14th century, and the older henne forth to late Old English.^[6]

Semantic evolution

The OED's definition covers "from that time forth" as well as "from this time".^[5] The phrase from henceforth (also fro henceforth) appears in the early Wycliffite Bible, about 1384,^[5] and Chaucer's Parson's Tale has from hennes forth.^[2] The MED also records the sense "from this point on" in a book, narrative or argument.^[2] Johnson (1755) defined it as "from this time forward", quoting Shakespeare's Macbeth: "Thanes and kinsmen, Henceforth be earls".^[9] Merriam-Webster now labels from henceforth archaic.^[3]

Timeline

• c. 1175 – heonon forð, the older compound, in a copy of an Old English homily.^[2]
• before 1375 – hennes-forth, from now on.^[5][2]
• c. 1384 – from henceforth, in the Wycliffite Bible.^[5]

Meanings

Adverb

1. From this time on; from now onwards: Henceforth the library will open at nine.^{[10][3][11][5]}
2. From that time on, in a narrative of the past.^[5]
3. from henceforth (archaic): henceforth.^[3][5]

Related words

• hence
• forth
• henceforward
• forward

Usage notes

Henceforward and henceforwards are used in the same sense.^[11][4]

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Kurath, Hans; Kuhn, Sherman M.; Lewis, Robert E., eds. (1952–2001), Middle English Dictionary, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press; online edition ed. Frances McSparran et al. (2000–2018)
3. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
7. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ Bosworth, Joseph; Toller, T. Northcote (1898), An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press; Toller, T. Northcote (1921), Supplement
9. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
10. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
11. ^ a b Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins