conditional

1 of 3

adjective

con·​di·​tion·​al kən-ˈdi-sh(ə-)nəl 

1

: subject to, implying, or dependent upon a condition

a conditional promise

2

: expressing, containing, or implying a supposition

the conditional clause if he speaks

3

a

: true only for certain values of the variables or symbols involved

conditional equations

b

: stating the case when one or more random variables are fixed or one or more events are known

conditional frequency distribution

4

a

: conditioned sense 2

conditional reflex

conditional response

b

: established by conditioning as the stimulus eliciting a conditional response

conditionality

kən-ˌdi-shə-ˈna-lə-tē 

noun

conditionally

kən-ˈdi-sh(ə-)nə-lē 

adverb

conditional

2 of 3

noun (1)

1

: a conditional word, clause, verb form, or morpheme

2

: implication sense 3b

conditionality

3 of 3

noun (2)

con·​di·​tion·​al·​i·​ty kən-ˌdi-shə-ˈna-lə-tē 

plural -es

: the quality or state of being conditional

Synonyms of conditional

Adjective

• dependent
• tentative

Examples of conditional in a Sentence

Adjective

“If she speaks, you must listen” is a conditional sentence.

The sentence contains the conditional clause “if she speaks.”

Noun (1)

The clause “if she speaks” is a conditional.

The conditional is often marked by the word “if.”

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The statement said Jones’ competency was later restored in 2025, and she was released to a supervised mental health treatment facility and enrolled in mental health court as part of a conditional release agreement. —Ben Wheeler, Kansas City Star, 12 June 2026

Most Pennsylvania municipalities that have addressed this issue have designated data centers as a conditional use. —Michael Helbing, The Conversation, 11 June 2026

Noun

But those are all conditionals, in various ways. —Alex Kirshner, New York Times, 12 Oct. 2025

Neuroscientists have already identified distinct brain activity patterns when programmers think about loops, conditionals or data structures. —Somdip Dey, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (1)

1828, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing conditional

• conditional probability
• the conditional

Rhymes for conditional

• additional
• nutritional
• positional
• traditional
• transitional
• volitional
• compositional
• definitional
• depositional
• dispositional
• intuitional
• nontraditional

Kids Definition

conditional

adjective

con·​di·​tion·​al

kən-ˈdish-nəl, 

-ən-ᵊl

1

: depending on a condition

a conditional sale

2

: expressing, containing, or implying something supposed

"if we go" is a conditional clause

conditionally

-nə-lē, 

-ən-ᵊl-ē

adverb

Medical Definition

conditional

adjective

con·​di·​tion·​al kən-ˈdish-nəl, -ən-ᵊl 

1

a

: conditioned

conditional reflex

conditional response

b

: eliciting a conditional response

a conditional stimulus

2

: permitting survival only under special growth or environmental conditions

conditional lethal mutations

conditionally

-ˈdish-nə-lē, -ən-ᵊl-ē 

adverb