# if

Pronunciation: US say "IF" /ɪf/; UK

## Conjunction

1. On the condition that, or supposing that, introducing something that may or may not be true, including imagined or unreal situations (if I were you; if it had rained).
   - Simple: Used to talk about something that might happen or be true, and what happens or would happen then.
   - _The plant will die if nobody waters it._
   - _Look both ways if you cross the road here._
2. In case; introducing a condition under which the main statement is relevant.
   - Simple: Used to offer something in case it is wanted.
   - _There's some leftover pasta in the fridge if you get hungry before we're back._
   - _There are blankets in the cupboard if it gets cold._
3. Whether, introducing an indirect question as the object of a verb.
   - Simple: Used to mean 'whether', after words like 'know' or 'ask'.
   - _Nobody asked if the plan made sense._
   - _He couldn't tell if the noise was thunder or guns._
4. Whenever; every time that.
   - Simple: Used to mean 'whenever', for things that always happen.
   - _The alarm sounds if the door opens after midnight._
   - _The buses stop if it snows._
5. Even if, or even in the circumstances that, usually in exaggerated statements.
   - Simple: Used in strong statements to say that even this would not change things.
   - _He'll finish the race if he has to crawl._
   - _He wouldn't lift a finger to help us if the house were on fire._
6. Considering or given that, introducing a condition already known to hold.
   - Simple: Used for something already known to be true, meaning 'since'.
   - _And if the drain is blocked, as we know it is, nothing will flow._
   - _If you knew the store was closed, why did you drive me all the way there?_
8. Although; introducing a concession.
   - Simple: Used to mean 'although', adding a small weak point.
   - _The plan is sound, if ambitious._
   - _She was polite, if not exactly warm._

## Noun

7. Something uncertain or conditional, such as a doubt, a possibility, or a condition. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: A thing that is not certain, as in 'too many ifs'.
   - _The deal rests on a series of ifs._
   - _The whole trip depends on the weather, and that's a pretty big if this time of year._

## Other meanings

- (conjunction) In programming, a keyword that invokes conditional processing, running given statements only when a condition is true.

## Origin

This word comes from Middle English "if" (also "yif," "yef"), from Old English "ġif," going back through Proto-West Germanic to Proto-Germanic "*jabai" ("when, if"). It is related to Dutch "of," German "ob" ("if, whether"), and Icelandic "ef."

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/if (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).