ifconj.n.
/ɪf/, U.S. /ɪf/ A. conj.
I. Introducing a clause of condition or supposition (the protasis of a conditional sentence). On condition that; given or granted that; in (the) case that; supposing that; on the supposition that.
1. With the conditional clause or protasis in the indicative. The indicative after if implies that the speaker expresses no adverse opinion as to the truth of the statement in the clause; it is consistent with his acceptance of it.In modern use the indicative is preferred to the subjunctive in cases which lie near the borderline of 1 and 2.
a. Conditional clause in present (or present perfect) indicative.
ΚΠ
α. with principal clause in present (or present perfect) indicative.
β. with principal clause expressing future time.c1000 West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) viii. 52 gif haw mine spræce gehealt ne bið he næfre dead.c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 673 Ȝiff he seþ þatt mann iss ohht. Forrfæredd off hiss sihhþe He wile himm færenn.a1250 Owl & Nightingale 904 Ȝet i þe wulle an oder segge Ȝif þu hit const a riht bilegge.1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 10997 Ȝuf we doþ ou wrong wo ssal ou do riȝt?c1300 Harrow. Hell 119 Ȝef thou revest me of myne, Y shal reve the of thyne.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 14754 Ȝif ȝe þis temple felle to grounde I shal hit rise in litil stounde.c1440 Partonope 6263 Gyff I scape fro thens on lyve Agayn to prysoun I shall come as blyfe.1600 W. Shakespeare Merchant of Venice iii. i. 62 If we are like you in the rest, we will resemble you in that. View more context for this quotation1633 Costlie Whore i. sig. B2v Ile tell another tale, if they have done.1776 Trial Maha Rajah Nundocomar for Forgery 73/2 If you do not give a plain answer to a plain question, you will be committed.1816 J. Wilson City of Plague i. ii. 36 I'll give thee half of it If thou speak'st truly.1899 N.E.D. at If Mod. If he does it, he will be punished.γ. with principal clause in imperative.a900 Martyrol. in Old Eng. Texts 178 And gif monn minne noman nemneð in ænigre frecennisse..ðonne gefylge se ðinre mildheortnesse.c1000 West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) xviii. 15 Soþlice gyf þin broþor syngað [Lind. synngiga; Rushw. firnige vel syngige] wið þe, ga and styr him.c1000 West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) xviii. 16 gyf he þe ne gehyrð [L. geheres; R. ge-hereþ], nim þonne gyt ænne oððe twegen to þe.c1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 31 Ȝef þe is lef þin hele, heald þin cunde.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 187 Yef þou hest ynoȝ of guode, yef largeliche, and yef þou hest lite, of þo litle yef gledliche.a1425 (c1395) Bible (Wycliffite, L.V.) (Royal) (1850) Matt. xviii. 16, 17 If he herith thee not, take with thee oon or tweyne..And if he herith [v.r. here] not hem, seie thou to the chirche.1535 Bible (Coverdale) Gen. xlvii. B Yf thou knowest that there be men of actiuyte amonge them, make them rulers of my catell [amōge & thē (them x2) in text].1611 Bible (King James) Job xxxviii. 18 Declare if thou knowest it all. View more context for this quotation1611 Bible (King James) Philemon 18 If hee hath wronged thee or oweth thee ought, put that on mine account. View more context for this quotation1693 J. Dryden tr. Ovid Metamorphoses i, in Examen Poeticum 67 If I am Heav'n-begot, assert your Son By some sure Sign.1899 N.E.D. at If Mod. If they are not good, throw them away.δ. with principal clause of other forms.1611 Bible (King James) 2 Cor. xi. 4 If he that commeth preacheth another Iesus..ye might well beare with him. View more context for this quotation1821 Ld. Byron Cain i. i, in Sardanapalus 346 If I shrink not from these..Why should I quail from him who now approaches?1899 N.E.D. at If Mod. If records are to be trusted, there was no famine this year.971 Blickl. Hom. 27 Þas ealle ic þe sylle, gif þu feallest to me.
OE Beowulf 447 Ac he me habban wile d[r]eore fahne, gif mec deað nimeð.
c1000 West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) xviii. 15 gyf he þe gehyrð, þu gestaþelast þinne broðor.
c1200 Vices & Virtues 33 Ȝif ðu ðus dost, ðanne berest þu þin rode.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) John i. 25 What therfore baptysist thou, if thou art not Crist, nethir Elye, nether prophete?
a1450 Knt. de la Tour (1868) 5 For yef ye do, the dede praiethe for you.
1611 Bible (King James) Gen. iv. 7 If thou doe [16.. doest] well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest [ Coverd. do] not well, sinne lieth at the doore. View more context for this quotation
1611 Bible (King James) Jas. ii. 17 Euen so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. View more context for this quotation
1780 R. B. Sheridan School for Scandal ii. ii. 18 She's six and fifty if she's a day.
1861 J. Kavanagh Fr. Women of Lett. I. viii. 214 If I have not married, it is because I have not loved.
1864 F. C. Bowen Treat. Logic vi. §3. 165 If A is true, O is false, E false, and I true... If A is false, O is true. If E is false, I is true.
1878 J. Morley Carlyle in Crit. Misc. 200 If he does see it, he rides roughshod over it.
b. Conditional clause in past (or pluperfect) indicative, with principal clause in indicative or imperative.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > existence > state or condition > circumstance or circumstances > if, in case, or lest [conjunction]
ifc825
lestc1000
waldOE
anda1225
lest whena1300
in case1357
anc1400
lest thatc1400
c825 Vesp. Psalter vii. 4, 5 gif ic dyde ðis, gif is unreht~wisnis in hondum minum, gif ic agald ðæm geldendum me yfel, ic gefallu [etc.].
OE Genesis 661 Gif þu him heodæg wuht hearmes gespræce, he forgifð hit þeah.
c1000 West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) xiii. 14 gif ic þwoh eowre fet..ge sceolon þwean eower ælc oðres fet.
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 8835 Ȝif enie of is men misdude þe pouere..vengance he nom stronge.
c1330 R. Mannyng Chron. (1810) 40 If he had pes at euen, he had non at morow.
c1405 (c1385) G. Chaucer Knight's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 257 If þt Palamon was wounded soore Arcite is hurt. as muche as he or moore.
a1616 W. Shakespeare As you like It (1623) iii. ii. 39 If thou neuer was't at Court, thou neuer saw'st good manners: if thou neuer saw'st good maners, then thy manners must be wicked..Thou art in a parlous state. View more context for this quotation
1832 Ld. Tennyson Lotos-eaters iv, in Poems (new ed.) 110 If his fellow spake, His voice was thin.
1835 C. Thirlwall Hist. Greece I. vii. 267 If Amyclae was the Achaean capital, we can the better understand how it might be able to hold out.
1855 G. H. Lewes Life & Wks. Goethe (1875) ii. 11 But if the town was heedless, not so were the stars.
1899 N.E.D. at If Mod. If he had loved her before, he now adored her.
c. Conditional clause expressing future time, with principal clause in indicative or imperative Now archaic (supplied by a).Béo is here considered as future.
ΚΠ
c825 Vesp. Psalter xii. 5 [xiii. 4] Ða swencað me gefiað, gif onstyred ic beam.
835 in Old Eng. Texts 448 Ann ic his freoðomunde, gif he ðonne lifes bið.
c1000 West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) v. 37 Soðlice gyf þær mare byð, þæt bið of yfele.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 243 Ȝif þou þis nult iþolien þe scal beon þa wrse.
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 716 Ȝif þou wole ȝut..more..wite of me, Al..þe ground icholle segge þe.
1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) Matt. xviii. 15 Ȝif thi brother shal synne [a1425 L.V. synneth, 1611 shall trespasse] in thee, go thou and reproue hym..Ȝif he shal heere [a1425 L.V. herith] thee, thou hast wonnen thi brother.
c1460 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Laud) l. 9439 Yf þou wolle my forebode hold Thow shalt be lord as I þee told.
1582 Bible (Rheims) Matt. xviii. 15 If thy brother shal offend against thee, goe and rebuke him. If he shall heare thee, thou shalt gaine [1611 hast gained] thy brother.
1611 Bible (King James) Matt. xviii. 19 If two of you shall agree..as touching any thing that they shall aske, it shall bee done for them. View more context for this quotation
2. With the conditional clause or protasis in the subjunctive, and the principal clause or apodosis in the indicative or imperative. The subjunctive after if implies that the speaker guards himself from endorsing the truth or realization of the statement; it is consistent with his doubt of it.
a. Conditional clause in present subjunctive
ΚΠ
α. with principal clause in imperative.
β. with principal clause expressing future time.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 6675 If he to myn autere flyȝe Men shul him þennes drawe to dyȝe.c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (1839) iii. 25 Ȝif thou kysse me, thou schalt have alle this Tresoure.c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (Roxb.) v. 14 If þou ga noght, þou schall hafe grete harme.c1405 (c1387–95) G. Chaucer Canterbury Tales Prol. (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 502 If gold ruste, what sholde Iren do.a1450 (?a1390) J. Mirk Instr. Parish Priests (Claud.) (1974) 67 Ȝef thow do þus thow schalt be dere To alle men that sen and here.1526 Bible (Tyndale) Luke x. f. xcij And yf the sonne of peace be theare, youre peace shall rest apon hym.1533 T. More Debellacyon Salem & Bizance i. xii. f. lxxvi He that dyeth in dedely synne, shal go to the deuyll, yf goddes word be trewe.1611 Bible (King James) Judges xvi. 17 If I bee shauen..I shall become weake, and bee like any other man. View more context for this quotation1818 W. Cruise Digest Laws Eng. Real Prop. (ed. 2) II. 142 If part of the money..be paid off, and a farther sum is borrowed..no redemption will be granted unless both sums are paid.γ. with principal clause in pres. indic.c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (Roxb.) Prol. 2 If we be riȝt childer of Criste, we awe for to chalange þe heritage þat oure fader left to vs.c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (Roxb.) i. 4 If a man come fro þe west partys of þe werld..he may..wende thurgh Almayne.1450 Myrc 22 Luytel ys worthy þy prechynge, Ȝef thow be of euyle lyuynge.1526 Bible (Tyndale) John i. f. cxixv Why baptisest thou then, yf thou be nott Christ, nor Helias?1600 W. Shakespeare Merchant of Venice iii. i. 63 If a Iewe wrong a Christian, what is his humillity? View more context for this quotation1611 Bible (King James) John xv. 18 If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. View more context for this quotation1648 W. Jenkyn Ὁδηγος Τυϕλος i. 7 If I be so young, I am in part excused for my illiteratenesse.1653 Z. Coke Psalm cxxvii in Art of Logick 118 If the Lord keep not the city, the Keepers watch in vain.1839 Times 11 Apr. 4/1 If we be not all Durhamised within another month, it is not from any sensible relaxation in the work of projected mischief.1851 E. A. Litton Church of Christ (1898) iv. 163 If it [the Church] be in its essence as visible a body as the republic of Venice, we have no need of faith to realise its existence.δ. with ptincipal clause of other form.1662 E. Stillingfleet Origines Sacræ i. vi. §4 If we believe Joseph Scaliger, there could not be an Eclipse of the Sun at the time affirmed by Tarrutius.1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iv, in tr. Virgil Wks. 144 For seven continu'd Months, if Fame say true, The wretched Swain his Sorrows did renew. View more context for this quotation805 in Old Eng. Texts 442 gif hio..bearn næbbe..þonne foe he to ðæm londe.
a900 in Old Eng. Texts 176 gif men ferlice wyrde unsofte, oððe sprecan ne maege, halga him ðis wæter.
c950 Lindisf. Gosp. Mark xii. 19 Moses us awrat þæt gef huælc..broðer dead sie..and forletes þæt wif..onfoe broðer his hlaf ðæs ilce.
OE Beowulf 452 Onsend Higelace, gif mec hild nime.
c1000 West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) iv. 3 gyf þu godes sunu sy [L. es; Lind. ðu arð, Rushw. siæ, Hatt. syo] cweð þæt þas stanas to hlafe gewurðon.
c1000 West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) iv. 6 gyf þu godes sunu eart [V. es; L. arð; R. sie; H. ert].
c1325 Metr. Hom. 52 Ilk dai mak we a iorne Till heuin, ef we god men be.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Matt. iv. 3 Ȝif thou be [a1425 L.V. art, 1526 Tyndale be, 1881 R.V. art] Goddis sone, say that these stoons be maad looues.
c1430 Two Cookery-bks. 9 Ȝif it be lente or fyssday take brothe of þe freysshe fysshe.
1534 Bible (Tyndale rev. Joye) Luke xiii. 9 If it beare not then, after that, cut it doune [later vv. thou shalt cut it downe].
1611 Bible (King James) John xx. 15 Sir, if thou haue borne [L. sustulisti; Wyclif, Genev., Rhem., R.V. hast; Tindale, Cranmer have borne] him hence, tell me where thou hast layd him. View more context for this quotation
1611 Bible (King James) Phil. ii. 1 If there bee therefore any consolation in Christ..Fulfill ye my ioy.
1759 S. Johnson Idler 13 Oct. 321 If there be any man faultless, bring him forth into publick view.
1899 N.E.D. at If Mod. If he come to-morrow, send for me.
b. Conditional clause in past subjunctive (in past sense), with principal clause in indicative or imperative.
ΚΠ
a1400 Octouian 841 Yef he were er y-bete sore, Thanne was he bete moche more.
1597 W. Shakespeare Richard II i. iii. 194 If euer I were traitour, My name be blotted from the booke of life. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Julius Caesar (1623) iii. ii. 80 If it were so, it was a greeuous Fault, And greeuously hath Cæsar answer'd it. View more context for this quotation
1850 Ld. Tennyson In Memoriam cxx. 188 If thou wert with me, and the grave Divide us not, be with me now. View more context for this quotation
c. Conditional clause in subjunctive with should in present or future sense (‘if it should rain to-day or to-morrow’) with principal clause in imperative, or in future, present, or present perfect indicative (‘do not come’, ‘I shall not come’, ‘I am prepared for it’, ‘I have planned something else’).
ΚΠ
1821–3 S. Rogers Italy xviii. 1 If ever you should come to Modena..Stop at a Palace near the Reggio-gate.
1839 C. Dickens Nicholas Nickleby vii. 64 If you should go near Barnard Castle, there is good ale at the King's Head.
1850 Ld. Tennyson In Memoriam xliii. 66 If such a dreamy touch should fall, O turn thee round, resolve the doubt. View more context for this quotation
1899 N.E.D. at If Mod. If you should come across him, tell him that I am looking for him.
3. With both protasis and apodosis in the subjunctive. Expressing a mere hypothesis which is admittedly not true or realized, and stating what would be the logical or natural consequence of its truth or realization.
a. Conditional clause in past subjunctive, with present or future sense (‘if you came’, ‘should come’, ‘were to come’ now or to-morrow). spec. if I were you.
ΚΠ
898 Anglo-Saxon Chron. an. 894 Swa þæt he mehte ægþerne geræcan gif hie ænigne feld secan wolden.
c1000 West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) viii. 42 gif god wære eowre fæder, witodlice ge lufedon me [Lind. gif god faeder iuer uoere gie ualde lufiga..mec].
c1250 Kent. Serm. in Old Eng. Misc. 27 He hit wolde slon, yef he hit michte finde.
c1300 Havelok (Laud) (1868) 1974 Yif he ne were, ich were nou ded.
a1307 Thrush & Night. in T. Wright & J. O. Halliwell Reliquiæ Antiquæ (1845) I. 241 This world were nout ȝif wimen nere.
c1380 Eng. Wycliffite Serm. in Sel. Wks. I. 217 If Peter were now alyve..he wolde seie þei weren not prestis of Crist.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) John xviii. 30 If this were not a mysdoer, we hadden not bitakun hym to thee [1582 Rheims If he were not a malefactour, we would not haue deliuered him vp to thee].
1529 T. More Dialogue Heresyes ii, in Wks. 200/1 Yet wer it a dampnable errour to worship anye if we shoulde worship none at all.
a1625 J. Fletcher Mad Lover i. i, in F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Comedies & Trag. (1647) sig. B2/2 If I were given to that vanity..What a most precious subject had I purchased.
1766 O. Goldsmith Vicar of Wakefield I. xvi. 165 And if I were a king, it should be otherwise.
1814 J. Austen Mansfield Park I. vi. 109 If I were you, I should not think of the expense. View more context for this quotation
1814 J. Austen Mansfield Park I. vi. 112 ‘Mr Rushworth,’ said Lady Bertram, ‘if I were you, I would have a very pretty shrubbery. One likes to get out into a shrubbery in fine weather.’ View more context for this quotation
1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. i. 3 I should very imperfectly execute the task..if I were merely to treat of battles and sieges.
1869 A. Trollope Phineas Finn II. xli. 30 ‘Of course you'll go,’ said Phineas. ‘I should, if I were you.’
a1899 Mod. If he were to come, what should we do? If he came, I should take to flight. If I were you, I would not do it. If they should meet you, it would be awkward.
1974 D. Gray Dead Give Away vi. 65 I'd lay off stirring up trouble for a bit if I were you.
b. Conditional clause in pluperfect subj., with past sense (‘if he had come’, ‘would have come’).
ΚΠ
1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) John xi. 21 Lord, if thou haddist be here, my brother hadde not be deed [1539 Cranmer, Lord, yf thou haddest bene here, my brother had not dyed].
1482 Monk of Evesham 50 He hadde browghte plesaunte worde and tytyngys of my dampnacyon to hys father the deuyl, yeffe the mercye and goodnes of my lorde sente Nycholas had not wythstonde hym.
1608 Bp. J. Hall Pharisaisme & Christianity 49 If they had beene as hot for God, as they were for themselues, it had beene happie.
1665 T. Herbert Some Years Trav. (new ed.) 120 Shame it were, if..we had gathered nothing.
1804 W. Cruise Digest Laws Eng. Real Prop. III. 469 If he had altered it..it would descend to the sister of the whole blood.
1819 P. B. Shelley Cenci ii. i. 21 If he Had killed me, he had done a kinder deed.
1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. II. vii. 256 All his difficulties would have been greatly augmented if Anne had declared herself favourable to the Indulgence.
1899 N.E.D. at If Mod. If he would have consented, all would have been right.
4. In pregnant senses:† b. = If it is certain or true that; as sure as. Obsolete. rare.
a. Even if, even though; though; granted that.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > testing > attestation, witness, evidence > qualification > on condition that [conjunction] > although
thoughc888
thoughc1050
allc1225
when1297
how so?c1330
althougha1350
ifa1400
if alla1400
though all?a1400
andc1400
suppose1400
albeit?a1425
albec1450
wella1470
even though1697
1340 R. Rolle Psalter lxxi. 14 (15th c. MS.) Honorable..is þe name of pore before him, gife it be disspised before men.]
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Fairf. 14) l. 579 (MED) Þe saule wiþ-outen wene to ilk a man hit ys vn-seyne if [Vesp. þof, Gött. þou, Trin. þouȝe] hit of alle haue a siȝt.
1572 R. Harrison tr. L. Lavater Of Ghostes iii. vii. 197 If Spirites of their owne accorde woulde gladly tell vs many thinges: yet wee must not giue eare vnto them.
1848 W. M. Thackeray Vanity Fair lviii. 526 If the Major had twitched before, he started now.
a1899 Mod. If he did say so, you needn't believe him. If they are poor, they are at any rate happy.
1965 New Statesman 16 Apr. 598/3 If Mr Stewart is top of the Tory pops, other ministers are also high up in the charts.
1967 Listener 17 Aug. 205/1 If my father's people were mill-workers.., my mother's people were agricultural workers.
1969 Listener 24 Apr. 585/1 If Mozart was a life-long admirer of J. C. Bach, his views on Clementi were disparaging, to put it mildly.
ΚΠ
a1616 W. Shakespeare Macbeth (1623) iii. iv. 73 If I stand heere, I saw him. View more context for this quotation
5. if that (northern if at) was formerly in use for the simple ‘if’. Now archaic.
ΚΠ
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) Ded. l. 249 He shall o domess daȝȝ. Vss gifenn heffness blisse Ȝiff þatt we shulenn wurrþi ben.
a1300 Dame Siriz in Wright Anecd. 3 If that thou me tellest skil I shal don after thi wil.
1307 Elegy Edw. I iv Aȝein the hethene forte fyhte..Myself ycholde ȝef that y myhte.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Fairf. 14) l. 5869 Þai salle for-soþ if atte I. may. wirk .ij. dayes werk a-pon a day.
c1405 (c1387–95) G. Chaucer Canterbury Tales Prol. (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 145 She wolde wepe, if þt she sawe a Mous Caught in a trappe, if it weere deed or bledde.
c1450 Guy Warw. (C.) 1809 Yf þat y may, Wyth my handys y schall assay.
1509 A. Barclay Brant's Shyp of Folys (Pynson) f. lxviii In the meane space if that deth vntretable Arrest the.
1608 W. Shakespeare King Lear xxiv. 258 If that her breath will mist or staine the stone, Why then she liues. View more context for this quotation
1821 Ld. Byron Sardanapalus iv. i. 132 If that you conquer, I live to joy in your great triumph.
6. The conditional clause is often elliptical, and may dwindle down to if and a word or phrase sufficient to suggest the complete sense; so if not (= if a thing is, be, or were not), formerly sometimes = ‘unless, except’; if any (see any adj. 2); if anything, if in any degree, perhaps even; if not, why not (see why adv. 4b).
ΚΠ
c1330 (?a1300) Sir Tristrem (1886) l. 725 Knowe it ȝiue ȝe can.
1560 Bible (Geneva) Dan. iii. 18 Our God..wil deliuer vs.. But if not, be it knowen to thee, o King, yt we wil not serue thy gods.
1642 tr. J. Perkins Profitable Bk. ii. §139. 61 He hath not authoritie to deliver it, if not by commandement.
1665 T. Herbert Some Years Trav. (new ed.) 173 Frogs are of great vertue, if physically used.
1711 London Gaz. mmmmdccclxiii/4 Very little if any white about him.
1766 O. Goldsmith Vicar of Wakefield I. vi. 54 We are not to judge of the feelings of others by what we might feel if in their place.
1836 G. C. Lewis Let. 15 July (1870) 54 The writer says that the wages are nearly equal; if anything, the King's wages are rather the lowest.
1845 M. Pattison in Christian Remembrancer Jan. 74 The style of Bede, if not elegant Latin, is yet correct, sufficiently classical.
1851 H. Spencer Social Statics xxviii. 392 If anything, we were comparatively deficient in these respects.
1873 E. Bulwer-Lytton Kenelm Chillingly II. iv. vi. 257 Shall I ever be in love? and if not, why not?
1882 Knowledge 2 70 So that she might be cured, if possible.
1884 Illustr. London News 5 July 18/1 He measured six feet two, if an inch; he weighed eighteen stone, if a pound.
1895 R. H. Sherard in Bookman Oct. 16/2 [He] labours hard over his proofs of the book, though little, if at all, over the newspaper proofs.
1909 P. A. Vaile Mod. Golf v. 92 If anything, touch the grass first.
1921 Wireless World 9 187/1 L. M. T... asks..(3) If a diagram he sends is correct and, if not, why not.
1931 H. Belloc Hist. Eng. IV. ii. i. 260 If anything the ritual of King-worship was even more exaggerated in her case than in the case of Henry or of Edward.
1944 K. A. Esdaile St. Martin in the Fields ii. 50 If anything, the destruction was greater than in 1547.
1967 Listener 23 Feb. 261/1 At the start of every month I have to send him an account..of my earnings, if any.
7. The conditional clause alone (by aposiopesis of the principal clause) is sometimes used as an exclamation to express (a) a wish or determination, e.g. If I had only known! (sc. I would have done so and so); (b) surprise or indignation, e.g. If ever I heard the like of that! The wretch! if he has not smashed the window!
ΚΠ
c1000 West Saxon Gospels: Luke (Corpus Cambr.) xix. 42 gif þu wistest and witod~lice on þysum þinum dæge þe ðe to sybbe synt.
1382 J. Wyclif Luke xix. 42 If thou haddist knowe, and thou, and sotheli in this thi day.
1637 S. Rutherford Lett. (1863) I. 393 If this kingdom would glorify the Lord in my behalf!
1702 J. Vanbrugh False Friend iii. ii If he is not equipped for a housebreaker!
1846 ‘Lord Chief Baron’ Swell's Night Guide (new ed.) 49 And, so help me never! if his nibs didn't go and dossed with her the same night.
1914 Sat. Evening Post (Philadelphia) 4 Apr. 10/1 ‘If it ain't Frisco Red!’ exclaimed one prone figure.
1925 T. Dreiser Amer. Trag. I. xvii. 145 ‘Oh, Gee, well, ain't that the limit?’.. ‘If you aren't the grouch.’
1925 T. Dreiser Amer. Trag. II. iii. 184 Well, by jing, if it ain't Tom.
8. Phrases. (See also even n.1 if, what pron., adv., int., adj.1, conj., and n. if.)† a. all if, if all: see all adj., pron., n., adv., and conj. Phrases 13a. † d. but if: unless, except. Obsolete.
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1340 R. Rolle Pricke of Conscience 3045 Þe saul, al-if it haf na body.
c1380 J. Wyclif Three Treat. 17 Al ȝif thei shulen aftir be dampnyd.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Fairf. 14) l. 1991 (MED) Al if [Vesp. And þof, Gött. And if] na rayne on erþ felle.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Fairf. 14) l. 4246 Alle if [Gött. Al þou] þaire trauþe al sundre ware.
a1425 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Galba) l. 27674 If all him-self neuer vnderstode.
?1520 A. Barclay tr. Sallust Cron. Warre agaynst Iugurth Prol. f. iiiiv All if he haue power so to do.
c1530 A. Barclay Egloges ii. sig. Kij All yf I woulde it were but shame.
b. an if, and if: (see an conj. 2, and conj.1 13b) = If. (Also occasionally if an.) archaic.
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1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 282 An doȝter..Ich ȝivis þe to þi wif & ȝif þou wolt bileue here.
c1394 P. Pl. Crede 17 Þerfor lerne þe byleue leuest me were And if any werldly wiȝt wisse me couþe.
1598 W. Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost v. ii. 232 Nay then two treyes, an if you grow so nice. View more context for this quotation
1749 H. Fielding Tom Jones IV. xi. ii. 109 If an she be a Rebel.
1816 S. T. Coleridge Christabel Pref. p. vii But an if this will not do.
1859 Ld. Tennyson Enid in Idylls of King 75 An if he live, we will have him of our band.
c. as if: see as adv. and conj. Phrases 1.
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c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 1662 Þatt nohht ne maȝȝ ben don..But iff itt be wiþþ witt.
1393 W. Langland Piers Plowman C. ii. 184 Feith..ys..ded as a dore-nayle · bote yf þe dede folwe.
c1400 (?c1380) Cleanness (1920) l. 1110 Hov schulde þou com to his kyth bot-if þou clene were?
a1450 Knt. de la Tour ix. 13 But yef thei amende hem, the citee and the peple shulde be perysshed.
a1586 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia (1590) ii. v. sig. Q7v He did not like that maides should once stirre out of their fathers houses, but if it were to milke a cow.
1596 E. Spenser Second Pt. Faerie Queene iii. iii. 16 But if remedee Thou her afford, full shortly I her dead shall see.
e. if so be (that), if it happen that, supposing that: a somewhat rhetorical equivalent of simple ‘if’. archaic and dialect. (Also occasionally if so were that; elliptically †if so.)
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1390 J. Gower Confessio Amantis III. 5 And if so is that thou so be, Tell me thy shrift, in privete.
1414 Rolls Parl. IV. 22 Ȝif hit be so that they axke you by spekyng, or by writyng.]
1495–6 in T. Stapleton Plumpton Corr. (1839) 114 Thynking that to be our next way, if so were that we wold not advise you to com not up by the pryvie seale.
a1547 Earl of Surrey tr. Virgil Fourth Bk. Aeneas (1554) iv. sig. Div If so that yonder wycked head must needes Recouer porte.
1559 P. Morwyng tr. C. Gesner Treasure of Euonymus If so be it the mesure of the bloud excied three sextares.
1611 Bible (King James) Josh. xiv. 12 If so be the Lord will be with me, then I shall bee able to driue them out. View more context for this quotation
1665 T. Herbert Some Years Trav. (new ed.) 173 If so be we left the Road,..they would wind about our horses legs.
1749 Ld. Chesterfield Let. 24 Nov. (1932) (modernized text) IV. 1443 If so be that I can get that affair done by the next post, I will not fail for to give your Lordship an account of it.
1861 Cornhill Mag. Aug. 183 ‘It's my opinion that any man can be a duke if so be it's born to him.’
f. if and when, in reference to a future time but with a strong element of doubt.
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the world > time > relative time > the future or time to come > in future [phrase] > if and when
if and when1926
the mind > mental capacity > belief > uncertainty, doubt, hesitation > unreliability > uncertain [phrase]
to remain to be seen1714
in the air1752
if and when1926
1926 H. W. Fowler Dict. Mod. Eng. Usage 254/1 If & when. Any writer who uses this formula lays himself open to entirely reasonable suspicions on the part of his readers... There is the suspicion that he is a timid swordsman who thinks he will be safer with a second sword in his left hand.
1940 G. B. Shaw Matter with Ireland (1962) 283 If and when the situation becomes grave enough to convince America that I have no alternative, I will reoccupy your ports.
1963 Amer. Speech 38 255 If and when a study of local words in Missouri appears, we will be able to trace the same patterns in that state too.
II. Non-conditional uses.
9. Introducing a noun-clause depending on the verb see, ask, learn, doubt, know, or the like: Whether. †Also, formerly, if that.
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OE Beowulf 272 Þu wast, gif hit is swa we soþlice secgan hyrdon.
OE Beowulf 1319 Frægn gif him wære æfter neodlaðu[m] niht getæse.
a1175 Cott. Hom. 219 Aȝen chire to chiesen ȝief [h]y wolden hare sceappinde lufie.
c1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 81 Sum fortocne..warbi we mihten cnowen ȝif it soð were þat þu seist.
a1400 Isumbras 241 Aske we thiese folkes of þaire mete, And luke ȝife we maye any gete.
1481 W. Caxton tr. Hist. Reynard Fox (1970) 37 He loked..a boute yf ony body had seen hym.
1594 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 2 sig. E We should not question if that he should liue.
1611 Bible (King James) Gen. viii. 8 Hee sent foorth a doue from him, to see if the waters were abated. View more context for this quotation
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 101 Observe if he disdains to yield the Prize. View more context for this quotation
1717 M. Prior Alma iii. 71 She doubts if two and two make four.
1895 Law Times Rep. 73 623/1 He asked if his wife was there.
B. n.
The conditional conjunction (see branch A.) used as a name for itself; hence, a condition, a supposition. (Cf. but n.2) Often in the tautological collocation ifs and ands (ans): see and conj.1 = if.
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the mind > mental capacity > belief > uncertainty, doubt, hesitation > [noun] > expression of
if1532
anda1535
humph1815
the mind > attention and judgement > testing > attestation, witness, evidence > qualification > [noun] > instance of
conditionc1380
protestationc1390
butc1405
restrictiona1450
limitationc1475
if1532
conditionary1678
reservation1719
whereas1795
yes but1870
string1888
1532 T. More Confut. Tyndale in Wks. 537/1 Though he put in for shame repentaunce thereunto, with Iffes.
a1535 T. More Hist. Richard III in Wks. (1557) 54/2 What quod the protectour thou seruest me I wene wt iffes & with andes.
c1585 R. Browne Answere to Cartwright 24 By his iffs and supposings.
1613 N. Breton Answer in Vncasing Machiuils Instr. G With ifs and ands he begins to say.
1672 J. Dryden Conquest Granada i. ii. i. 17 Abdal. If I am King, and if my Brother dye—Lindar. Two if's, scarce make one possibility.
a1711 T. Ken Sion iii, in Wks. (1721) IV. 409 Ah if, sad if! Love should decay!
1849 J. C. Hare Serm. Preacht Herstmonceux Church II. 455 We are always raking up some if or other, to disturb our faith.
1868 ‘G. Eliot’ Spanish Gypsy ii. 200 'Tis but a mirror, shows one image forth, And leaves the future dark with endless ‘ifs’.
Compounds
if-clause n. a clause of condition or supposition introduced by the word if.
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the mind > language > linguistics > study of grammar > syntax or word order > syntactic unit or constituent > [noun] > clause > conditional clause
condition1864
rejected condition1891
hypothetical clause1892
if-clause1893
then-clause1927
hypothetical1957
1893 J. A. Turner & A. R. S. Hallidie Primary Eng. Gram. 113 The if-clause tells us when, or under what circumstances the desert would be a paradise.
1904 C. T. Onions Advanced Eng. Syntax 57 A Complex Sentence consisting of an Adverb Clause of Condition (the If-Clause, sometimes called the Protasis) and a Principal Clause (sometimes called the Apodosis) is called a Conditional Sentence.
1926 H. W. Fowler Dict. Mod. Eng. Usage 576/2 It [sc. the word were] is entirely out of place in an if-clause concerned with past actualities & not answered by a were or would be in the apodosis.
1964 Eng. Stud. 45 85 The meaningful weight of the complete sentence may move from the if-clause to the headclause.
1966 G. N. Leech Eng. in Advertising vi. 61 Favourite openings are..if clauses.
if-shot n.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > cricket > batting > [noun] > types of stroke
long ball1744
nip1752
catch1816
no-hit1827
cut1833
short hit1833
draw1836
drive1836
square hit1837
skylarker1839
skyer1840
skyscraper1842
back-cut1845
bum1845
leg sweep1846
slog1846
square cut1850
driver1851
Harrow drive1851
leg slip1852
poke1853
snick1857
snorter1859
leg stroke1860
smite1861
on-drive1862
bump ball1864
rocketer1864
pull1865
grass trimmer1867
late cut1867
off-drive1867
spoon1871
push1873
push stroke1873
smack1875
Harrow drive1877
pull-stroke1880
leg glance1883
gallery-hit1884
boundary-stroke1887
glide1888
sweep1888
boundary1896
hook1896
leg glide1896
backstroke1897
flick1897
hook stroke1897
cover-drive1898
straight drive1898
square drive1900
edger1905
pull-drive1905
slash1906
placing stroke1907
push drive1912
block shot1915
if-shot1920
placing shot1921
cow-shot1922
mow1925
Chinese cut1937
haymaker1954
hoick1954
perhapser1954
air shot1956
steepler1959
mishook1961
swish1963
chop-
1920 D. J. Knight in P. F. Warner Cricket (Badminton Libr. of Sports & Pastimes) (new ed.) i. 36 It is essentially an ‘if’ shot, and must, to a certain extent, be unsound.
1922 Cricketer Ann. 1922–3 62 We will not indulge in ‘cowshots’ or ‘ifshots’.
if-stroke n. Cricket ‘a stroke considered to be unsound and likely to cause the batsman's dismissal if the ball is hit’ (Lewis).
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1897 K. S. Ranjitsinhji Jubilee Bk. Cricket iv. 182 In its worst form this [slipping the ball] is commonly known nowadays as the ‘if-stroke’. Originally it was called the ‘but-stroke’, after its great exponent, the Sussex wicket-keeper [Butt]; but some wag suggested that it should be called in preference the ‘if-stroke’, because if you hit the ball you are nearly sure to be out.
Derivatives
iffing n. saying or using ‘if’.
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the mind > attention and judgement > testing > attestation, witness, evidence > qualification > [noun] > use of
butting1553
iffing1687
1687 R. L'Estrange Answer Dissenter 21 The Letter is iffing of it now again too; with a ‘What if the Mercenary Ministers [etc.]’.
1887 Pierre (Dakota Territory) Collegian II. No. 3. 2 But iffing will not endow a college.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1899; most recently modified version published online March 2021).
> as lemmas
I.F.
I.F. n. (also i.f.) = intermediate frequency n. at intermediate adj. and n. Compounds.
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1927 H. J. Round Shielded Four-electrode Valve viii. 77 It should be possible to do with only one stage of intermediate frequency on account of the gain per stage in H.F. and I.F.
1956 C. E. Tibbs & G. G. Johnstone Frequency Modulation Engin. (ed. 2) ix. 387 Second channel interference can be avoided by choosing the i.f. to be greater than half the band of frequencies to be covered.
1963 J. A. Walston Transistor Circuit Design xxiii. 321 The difference frequency (IF frequency)..must be such that the transistor will function as an amplifier.
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conj.n.805as lemmas