Whereof

//wɛəɹˈɒv// adv, conj

adv, conj ·Common ·High school level

Definitions

Adverb
  1. 1
    Of what. archaic, not-comparable

    "Anthonio. [I]n ſooth I know not why I am ſo ſad, It wearies me: you ſay it wearies you; But how I caught it, found it, or came by it, What ſtuffe ’tis made of, whereof it is borne, I am to learne: and ſuch a Want-wit ſadnesse makes of mee, That I haue much ado to know my ſelfe."

  2. 2
    Of which. archaic, not-comparable
Conjunction
  1. 1
    Of what. formal
  2. 2
    Of which. formal

    "SATURNINUS: Go fetch them hither to us presently. TITUS: Why, there they are, both baked in that pie, Whereof their mother daintily hath fed, Eating the flesh that she herself hath bred."

  3. 3
    Of whom. formal

    "Now one day of the days, […] the Sultan cast his eyes upon her as she stood before him, and said to his Grand Wazir, “This be the very woman whereof I spake to thee yesterday, so do thou straightway bring her before me, that I may see what be her suit and fulfil her need.”"

  4. 4
    With or by which. archaic

Example

More examples

"Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must be silent."

Etymology

From Middle English wherof; equivalent to where + of. Compare the parallel formations of Swedish varav and Dutch waaraf.

Related phrases

in witness whereofknow whereof one speaks

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.