thereby

adverb

there·​by t͟her-ˈbī 

ˈt͟her-ˌbī

1

: by that : by that means

thereby lost her chance to win

2

: connected with or with reference to that

… thereby hangs a tale …

—William Shakespeare

Examples of thereby in a Sentence

He signed the contract, thereby forfeiting his right to the property.

Recent Examples on the Web

Lacy has heard plenty of kvetching from breeders who believe their horses to be undervalued in the book, and thereby potentially undervalued in the sale. — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 30 Oct. 2026

Improving the strength of this muscle thereby carries over into improved balance and performance in daily movements. — Kristen Gasnick, Verywell Health, 30 Oct. 2026

The development vehicle covered 1,205 kilometres from Stuttgart to Malmö without recharging, thereby demonstrating the technology’s potential for long ranges. — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 29 Oct. 2026

Once on the scent, the astronomers were able to trace its orbit across observations and locate it in images taken by other telescopes, and thereby infer its size. — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 28 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing thereby

• thereby hangs a tale

Rhymes for thereby

• abscissae
• adonai
• alibi
• alkali
• alumni
• amoebae
• amplify
• annuli
• beautify
• brachii
• butterfly
• calculi

Kids Definition

thereby

adverb

there·​by t͟ha(ə)r-ˈbī 

t͟he(ə)r-;

ˈt͟ha(ə)r-ˌbī, 

ˈt͟he(ə)r-

1

: by that : by that means

thereby lost her chance to win

2

: connected with or with reference to that

thereby hangs a tale