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>

Revision as of 16:21, 11 July 2018

If-or-wether-in-english-polyglot-club.png

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?")

or

  • 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.

With "or not"

  • Whether or not you want me to, I am going to the party.