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I was reading article that uses "thereto" a lot.

I searched its meaning and I found "to the thing just mentioned".

It's still not clear to me.

For example in this sentence:

The government has the right to inspect any such establishment or any papers or records relating thereto.

What is the "thing that just mentioned" on that sentence? Is it the government or "the right to inspect"?

tchrist
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Vasily zaitsev
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    In the example, thereto corresponds to any such establishment. – KillingTime May 31 '20 at 10:32
  • Thank your for the comment @KillingTime, I didn't expect that someone will answer me immediately :) I think stackExchange is a good platform to be better in English. – Vasily zaitsev May 31 '20 at 10:40
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    Thereto is an adverb, and modifies "relating". In older English, the combination {there + preposition} was used to mean {preposition + it}. There are a limited number of the "there+prep." forms that are used currently with "therefore" being the commonest. Most other uses are formal, legal, or somewhat old-fashioned. – Greybeard May 31 '20 at 11:15
  • Thanks @Greybeard, I'm now informed. – Vasily zaitsev May 31 '20 at 11:21
  • When using context to understand what you read, and you wonder if government is what there is pointing to, say to yourself "No, that couldn't be. Keep looking." – Yosef Baskin May 31 '20 at 11:58
  • Whenever there is something that refers to something else, it can be open to interpretation. In this case, I personally disagree with the first comment. (Although that could have been the intention of the author, and I can see that meaning too.) In my opinion, thereto refers to *the inspection* of any establishment. In other words, the government has the right to inspect any establishment, and it also has the right to request and review any documentation of any inspection. – Jason Bassford May 31 '20 at 14:30
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    Note that the use of "thereto" is pretty much limited to legalistic language these days. – Hot Licks May 31 '20 at 16:47
  • @Greybeard I agree with what you say about this group of adverbs. "Therefore", though, is not in this group. It's a conjunction meaning "thus, so, consequently". – Rosie F Jun 01 '20 at 04:51

3 Answers3

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In a comment, Greybeard answered:

Thereto is an adverb, and modifies "relating". In older English, the combination {there + preposition} was used to mean {preposition + it}. There are a limited number of the "there+prep." forms that are used currently with "therefore" being the commonest. Most other uses are formal, legal, or somewhat old-fashioned.

tchrist
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The meaning of 'thereto' is just what it looks like: "to the thing referred". 'There' can be anything, but mostly it refers to a written piece of material.

A very common phrase is: "any additions/changes thereto". For example, "After you submit the form, you will not be allowed to make any changes thereto". "Thereto" does not appear in conversational English, even in the most formal settings. Its characteristic use is in legal or highly formal writings.

KillingTime
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Cosmopolitan
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In a comment, Jason Bassford answered:

Whenever there is something that refers to something else, it can be open to interpretation. In this case, I personally disagree with the first comment. (Although that could have been the intention of the author, and I can see that meaning too.) In my opinion, thereto refers to the inspection of any establishment. In other words, the government has the right to inspect any establishment, and it also has the right to request and review any documentation of any inspection.

tchrist
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