thereby however

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "thereby however" is not correct and does not work well in written English.
It is a combination of two transitional phrases that do not logically fit together in standard usage. Example: "The project was completed ahead of schedule; thereby, however, we faced unexpected challenges."

⚠ May contain grammatical issues

News & Media

Science

Encyclopedias

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

1 human-written examples

Greece is vulnerable because it has relinquished its money creating power to the EEC; which thereby, however, has assumed some responsibility and liability if it doesn't help a member state.

Forbes

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

58 human-written examples

He has thereby also, however, evidently maneuvered himself into an uncomfortable position whereby the Fountain of Youth, for instance, is a final cause, even though it has no real being (esse reale).

SEP

The effort of meiotic mapping was thereby greatly reduced, however, the strategy still requires crossing to a polymorphic strain and sequencing of pooled progeny.

BMC Genomics

These observations were expected as AA ingestion reflects feed intake and thereby energy intake; however, after normalizing for energy intake, these correlations were still significant.

Amino Acids

Instead he resigned, however, thereby precipitating the constitutional crisis of le seize mai (May 16), centring on the question of whether ministerial responsibility was owed to the president or to the Chamber.

Encyclopedia Britannica

It is in the dawning awareness of their dependence upon nature that human beings first begin to distinguish themselves from nature, without, however, thereby ceasing to be dependent upon it.

SEP

LiDAR remote sensing is a rapidly evolving technology for quantifying aboveground biomass and thereby carbon pools; however, little work has evaluated the efficacy of repeat LiDAR measures for spatially monitoring aboveground carbon pools through time.

Remote Sensing of Environment

The firing eased after a few minutes however, thereby allowing the insertion of the remaining companies.

Wikipedia

DDM1 suppresses production of the siRNAs, however, thereby limiting RNA-directed DNA methylation at 5S rDNA repeats.

Plosone

Continuous administration of triptorelin downregulates the pituitary GnRH receptors, however, thereby inhibiting secretion of gonadotropins.

Cancer Management and Research

Only 50% of the subjects were responders however, thereby revealing a considerable degree of inter-individual variation.

Gut Microbes

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Avoid using "thereby however" in formal writing. It is generally considered grammatically incorrect and can confuse readers. Opt for clearer alternatives like "consequently, however" or restructure the sentence for better flow.

Common error

A common mistake is to string together multiple conjunctive adverbs without careful consideration of their individual meanings. Using "thereby however" together creates a redundancy and obscures the intended logical connection between ideas. Be mindful of the specific meaning you wish to convey and choose the most precise conjunctive adverb or phrase.

Linguistic Context

Conjunctive adverbs often serve to connect two independent clauses, providing a link that shows relationships such as cause and effect, contrast, or sequence. However, the combination "thereby however" is considered grammatically incorrect, as highlighted by Ludwig AI, because it doesn't follow standard usage.

Expression frequency: Rare

Frequent in

Science

30%

News & Media

30%

Encyclopedias

20%

Less common in

Formal & Business

10%

Wiki

5%

Social Media

5%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "thereby however" is generally considered grammatically incorrect and is discouraged in formal writing. As Ludwig AI indicates, this combination of conjunctive adverbs creates a redundancy and obscures the intended logical connection between ideas. While each word individually has its specific meaning—"thereby" indicating consequence and "however" indicating contrast—their combination is not standard English usage. It's best to opt for clearer alternatives like "consequently, however" or to restructure the sentence for improved clarity and flow. The examples from Forbes and Encyclopedia Britannica, while containing both words, do not validate their direct combination as a correct phrase. Always consider the specific meaning you wish to convey and choose the most precise conjunctive adverb or phrase to articulate your thoughts effectively.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

Consequently, however

This alternative replaces "thereby" with "consequently" to explicitly indicate a result or effect, maintaining the contrast introduced by "however".

Thus, however

Using "thus" instead of "thereby" provides a clearer indication of causation or logical consequence, while "however" still introduces a contrast.

Therefore, however

Replacing "thereby" with "therefore" emphasizes the logical conclusion or result, with "however" signaling a contrast or exception.

Accordingly, however

Substituting "thereby" with "accordingly" suggests that the subsequent action or event is in alignment with a preceding condition, while "however" adds a contradictory element.

Subsequently, however

By using "subsequently" instead of "thereby", the phrase indicates a sequence of events, where "however" introduces a contrast to the expected outcome.

Nonetheless, therefore

Swapping the order and using "nonetheless" with "therefore" shifts emphasis to the contrast first, then the consequence.

Nevertheless, thus

Similar to the above, "nevertheless" highlights the contrast, while "thus" indicates the result.

Despite this, consequently

This restructures the sentence to explicitly state the contrasting element ("despite this") followed by the consequence ("consequently").

In spite of this, therefore

Similar to the above, this phrase directly acknowledges a contrasting element before introducing a logical result.

Yet, as a result

This option uses "yet" to present a contrast and "as a result" to clearly indicate the outcome.

FAQs

What does "thereby" mean and how is it used?

"Thereby" means "by that means" or "as a result of that". It indicates that something is caused or achieved by a particular action or event. For example: "He lost his license, thereby losing his ability to drive."

What does "however" mean and how is it used?

"However" is a conjunctive adverb used to introduce a statement that contrasts with or contradicts something that has already been said. It can also mean "in whatever way" or "to whatever extent". Example: "The food was good; "however", the service was slow."

Why is "thereby however" considered grammatically incorrect?

Combining "thereby" and "however" creates a redundant and illogical construction. "Thereby" indicates a direct consequence, while "however" introduces a contrast. Using them together obscures the intended relationship between ideas. Using "consequently however" or "thus however" would be better.

What are some alternatives to using "thereby however" in a sentence?

Instead of "thereby however", consider using phrases like "consequently, however", "nevertheless, therefore", or restructuring the sentence to clearly separate the cause and the contrast. For example, "The policy was implemented; as a result, however, productivity decreased."