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Glite Dictionary
🔄 Logical operator 🔄 Related to logic
biconditional

biconditional

1 9.5
About two statements that are either both true or both false
  • adjective
  • /ˌbaɪkənˈdɪʃənl/
  • Specialized
: bicondicional
  • The theorem was rewritten in biconditional form to clarify the relationship between the two properties.

Examples

  • A statement is biconditional.

  • A biconditional statement is true only when both parts are either true or false.

  • In logic, a biconditional expression is often represented by a double-headed arrow.

  • The statement is biconditional if both conditions are satisfied.

  • In logic, a biconditional statement asserts that both conditions are equivalent.

  • The logician explained that a biconditional relationship means if one statement is true, the other must also be true.

  • You can identify a biconditional in mathematics when both parts imply each other in a theorem.

Surface Forms

biconditional positive

Morphology

biconditional = conditional (semi-transparent) = bi + condition + al

The pieces 'bi-' and 'conditional' are form-meaning transparent, but the specialised logical meaning ('if and only if') is technical and not fully predictable for an average learner.

Etymology

The word biconditional combines bi- meaning 'two', as in bicycle, and conditional from 'condition' or 'if'. So it describes a two-way condition: each part depends on the other, which is why a biconditional is true only when both parts are true or both are false.