thereby done

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "thereby done" is not correct in standard written English.
It is an attempt to convey that something has been completed as a result of a previous action, but it is not a commonly used or grammatically correct expression. Example: "The task was completed, thereby done, and ready for review."

⚠ May contain grammatical issues

News & Media

Science

Encyclopedias

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

4 human-written examples

He has thereby done much to hoist his Liberal Democrats from their usual third-party peripheral role.

The New York Times

Yet so far they have let fintech flourish, and thereby done more good than harm.All told, financial-services firms in fields that fintech could potentially disrupt generate global revenues estimated at $4.7 trillion a year and profits of $470 billion, according to analysts at Goldman Sachs, a bank.

The Economist

The principles were set out, a century and a half ago, by John Stuart Mill, a British liberal philosopher, who urged that the state had no right to intervene to prevent individuals from doing something that harmed them, if no harm was thereby done to the rest of society.

The Economist

But he could easily have killed the Bush tax cuts and thereby done more good for our nation's fiscal situation than anyone will be in a position to do for many years to come.

Huffington Post

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

52 human-written examples

He was "correcting" his people, and thereby doing his duty as a priest.Others disagreed.

The Economist

He thereby did not anger his anti-drug viewers, and if he had any acidheads among his fans he did not anger them, either.

The New Yorker

To make matters worse, he insisted on calling Jerusalem the "capital" of Israel – thereby doing even more to undermine the Middle East peace process than Tony Blair.

The Guardian

The combination could create an industry standard, the commission said, attracting all online media companies and thereby doing away with competition in digital rights management software.

The New York Times

After all, husbands know their wives better than the government does and thereby do less to discourage women from getting back to work than government benefit rules do.

The New York Times

Under socialist planning, government commands were used to allocate employment and thereby did not permit the hiring or firing of workers for strictly economic reasons.

Encyclopedia Britannica

They resumed the old Medicean practice of trading on their own account, and, without reaping much benefit thereby, did the utmost damage to private enterprise.

Encyclopedia Britannica

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Avoid using the phrase "thereby done" in formal writing. Instead, opt for more grammatically correct and widely accepted alternatives such as "thereby completed" or "thus accomplished" to maintain clarity and professionalism.

Common error

A common mistake is to use "thereby done" when attempting to describe a completed action. This phrase is not standard English. Instead, use a more direct passive construction or rephrase the sentence to avoid this awkward phrasing.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "thereby done" attempts to function as an adverbial phrase indicating consequence or completion. However, due to its non-standard grammatical structure, it fails to effectively convey this function. As Ludwig AI highlights, the phrase is not correct.

Expression frequency: Rare

Frequent in

News & Media

33%

Science

33%

Encyclopedias

33%

Less common in

Formal & Business

0%

Wiki

0%

Academia

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

The phrase "thereby done" is generally considered grammatically incorrect and is rarely used in standard English. As Ludwig AI indicates, it is not a correct expression. While the intention is to convey that something has been completed as a result of a previous action, it's best to opt for more accepted alternatives like "thereby completed", "thus accomplished", or "therefore finished". Using these alternatives will improve clarity and ensure your writing is grammatically sound. While it appears in News & Media, Science and Encyclopedias articles, it is still an outlier. Therefore, avoiding this phrase in formal and professional contexts is recommended.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

thereby completed

Replaces "done" with "completed", a more common and grammatically sound term.

thereby achieved

Substitutes "done" with "achieved", emphasizing the accomplishment aspect.

thus accomplished

Replaces "thereby" with "thus" and "done" with "accomplished", resulting in a more formal and correct expression.

therefore finished

Uses "therefore" to indicate consequence and "finished" to denote completion, offering a clear and straightforward alternative.

in so doing

Emphasizes the action that leads to a particular result.

by doing so

Highlights the manner by which the result is achieved.

as a result

Focuses on the consequential aspect of the action.

consequently

A single-word adverb emphasizing the outcome of the action.

in consequence

Similar to "as a result", but slightly more formal.

accordingly

Indicates that something is done in a way that is appropriate to what has already occurred.

FAQs

Is "thereby done" grammatically correct?

No, "thereby done" is not considered grammatically correct in standard English. It's better to use alternatives like "thereby completed" or "thus accomplished".

What are some alternatives to "thereby done"?

Alternatives include "thereby completed", "thus accomplished", "therefore finished", or "in so doing". The best choice depends on the specific context.

When is it appropriate to use "thereby"?

"Thereby" is used to indicate a result or consequence of a previous action. For example, "He studied diligently, "thereby improving" his grades."

Is there a difference between "thereby" and "therefore"?

Yes, "thereby" indicates a direct consequence of a specific action, while "therefore" introduces a logical conclusion based on preceding statements. "Thereby" is more closely tied to the action itself. For example, “He invested wisely, "thereby securing" his future" (direct result), vs. “He is a successful investor; "therefore he is wealthy"” (logical conclusion).