TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:USAGE: Therefore and Thus From:Ron Sering CDS <ronaldse -at- MANX -dot- CDS -dot- TEK -dot- COM> Date:Wed, 29 Oct 1997 08:19:11 MST
I, too, hate the words. IMHO, "Thus," if you are writing for an international audience-especially if their native tongue is not a Romance language-should not be used at all, as it comes to us from the original Latin and may not be readily understood or translated. I have found that you can simply place your concluding statement at the very end of the explanation, without "Therefore" or "Thus" to frame it. If the explanation is very long and involved, you can split off the conclusion with a lower-level heading saying "Conclusion."
Thus, you eliminate the use of these overly-stuffy terms which therefore makes your work less grating and more accessible ;-)