🌧️ Condition word 🗣️ Whether (in questions) ❓ A possible condition

if

27 5.1

A possible condition that could change what happens

noun
/ɪf/

: si

The decision will depend on the if of the weather conditions next week.

Examples

What would happen to the housing market if you outlawed mortgages?
They are considering various ifs before making their final choice.
People pay slightly more if they use use cash.
I would want to know if Trump is going to run again.
But you lose something very important if you only look at it that way.
And I was like, what if this plane goes down?
Maybe the people would change their behavior if there were real consequences.
The perfect lip colour if you are a light summer.
He explained the potential if of losing funding for their project.

Synonyms

adverbial of condition

vsif

8.8

A group of words that says when something will happen or what must happen first, often starting with if

serves as a single word marking that conditional idea rather than a full clause

Idioms

as if

∞ 2.1

In a way that makes something seem true though it may not be

if not

460 2.9

Saying something may be even more true than first said

if only

427 3.0

To wish the past had been different because you regret it

if need be

33 3.9

When it is necessary to do something

I'll be damned if

NSFW

33 9.9

A strong way to say you refuse or do not believe something

nothing if not

Formal

21 7.9

Showing a particular quality very strongly

if it's all the same

17 6.5

When no one likes one choice more than another

if you say so

Informal

15 7.7

Accept what someone says while showing doubt or little interest

if the shoe fits, wear it

Informal

2 8.7

Accept a criticism if it applies to you

if it bleeds, it leads

Literature

1 9.4

News that is violent or shocking gets more attention and appears first

if looks could kill

Informal

1 8.9

A very angry stare that seems like it could hurt someone

if I'm lying, I'm dying

Informal

1 9.9

To say firmly that what you say is true

if you know, you know

Slang

1 9.9

Only people with the same knowledge or experience understand this

catch me if you can

Informal

1 7.0

Challenge someone to try to reach or pass you

as if there were no tomorrow

Informal

1 8.2

Act with great energy and not worry about the future

doomed if you do, doomed if you don't

Informal

1 9.3

Any choice you make leads to bad results

big if true

Texting

9.2

Something that would be very important if it is true

damned if one does and damned if one doesn't

NSFW

9.9

A situation where any choice leads to trouble or criticism

to look as if she had been dragged through a hedge backwards

9.9

Seem very untidy and messy

if it had teeth

9.9

Very sharp or harsh in a way that would hurt someone if it could

if my aunt had balls, she'd be my uncle

Offensive

9.9

A phrase people say to show talking about impossible what-ifs is pointless

if these walls could talk

Informal

9.1

An idea that a place could tell stories from its past

wouldn't shout if a shark bit him

9.9

A person who is very calm and not easily upset, even in a dangerous situation

Compounds

Catch Me If You Can

1 4.1

A 2002 American film by Steven Spielberg starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks

Surface Forms

if singular

Etymology

If as a noun comes from Old English gif, which marked a 'condition' or possibility. So an if is a possible condition that can change what happens.