Definition of: therefore

(thâr′fôr′, -fōr′) adverb & conj.
For that or this reason; on that ground or account; hence: consequently: He did not run fast enough; therefore he lost the race. Synonyms (conj.): accordingly, because, consequently, hence, since, then, thence, whence, wherefore. Therefore is the most precise and formal word for expressing the direct conclusion of a chain of reasoning; then carries a similar but slighter sense of inference, which it gives incidentally rather than formally; as, If this is true, then we can go. Consequently denotes a direct result, but more frequently of a practical than a theoretical kind; as, Important matters demand my attention; consequently I shall not sail today. Accordingly denotes correspondence, which may or may not be consequence; it is often used in narration; as, The soldiers were eager and confident; accordingly they sprang forward at the word of command. Thence is a word of more sweeping inference than therefore, applying not merely to a single set of premises but often to all that has gone before, including the reasonable inferences that have not been formally stated. Wherefore is the correlative of therefore, and whence of hence or thence, appending the inference or conclusion to the previous statement without a break. Compare synonyms for BECAUSE.