Difference between revisions of "Language/English/Grammar/When-use-If-or-Whether"
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<span style="font-size:25px; font-weight:bold;color: black">When to use "whether" or "if" in English?</span> | <span style="font-size:25px; font-weight:bold;color: black">When to use "whether" or "if" in English?</span> | ||
==Use "if" or "whether" (Interchangeable):== | |||
Whether and if can be used interchangeably in the following circumstances: | |||
===When reporting yes/no questions.=== | |||
I am not sure whether I will be attending the event. | |||
I am not sure if I will be attending the event. | |||
(In this example, the yes/no question is "Am I attending the event?") | |||
In whether/if...or...constructions. | |||
I would like to know whether it is a true story or fabricated. | |||
I would like to know if it is a true story or fabricated. | |||
Note: Using whether is far more common. It is certainly more formal. | |||
==Use only "if" with:== | ==Use only "if" with:== | ||
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==Use only "whether" when== | ==Use only "whether" when== | ||
===Verb with "to"=== | ===Verb with "to"=== | ||
*Bob didn’t know whether to invite Amanda to the party. | *Bob didn’t know whether to invite Amanda to the party. | ||
Revision as of 17:18, 29 June 2017
When to use "whether" or "if" in English?
Use "if" or "whether" (Interchangeable):
Whether and if can be used interchangeably in the following circumstances:
When reporting yes/no questions.
I am not sure whether I will be attending the event. I am not sure if I will be attending the event.
(In this example, the yes/no question is "Am I attending the event?")
In whether/if...or...constructions. I would like to know whether it is a true story or fabricated. I would like to know if it is a true story or fabricated.
Note: Using whether is far more common. It is certainly more formal.
Use only "if" with:
the conditional tense
A sentence that can only be realized under certain conditions.
- Bob didn’t know if Amanda was going away.
Use only "whether" when
Verb with "to"
- Bob didn’t know whether to invite Amanda to the party.