if not

idiom

1

—used to talk about the negative result or effect of something

You should study. If not, you won't pass the test.

2

—used to express surprise about meeting someone when it is not expected

So I went to the game and who should I see there if not my old friend Tom!

Examples of if not in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The chamber could send its funding package to end the shutdown over to the House of Representatives as soon as Monday (if not then, certainly in the coming days). —Zachary Schermele, USA Today, 10 Nov. 2025

But the long line of people waiting to snap photos suggests that many, if not most, of them do. —Wayne Chang, CNN Money, 10 Nov. 2025

Schools are often the only buildings that stand on pilings — important amid the rising waters of climate change — and also the only buildings large enough to house dozens if not hundreds of people for days at a time. —Emily Schwing, NPR, 10 Nov. 2025

The conversation was gracious and thoughtful, if not particularly revelatory. —Amanda Petrusich, New Yorker, 10 Nov. 2025

Rhymes for if not

• allot
• barat
• begot
• besought
• bethought
• bloodshot
• boycott
• buckshot
• crackpot
• croat
• culottes
• dashpot