1
as in assumption
something taken as being true or factual and used as a starting point for a course of action or reasoning
your conclusion may turn out to be accurate, but you're postulating a lot of ifs
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in condition
something upon which the carrying out of an agreement or offer depends
there are a number of ifs in the proposal
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of if
That's a huge if against the best front line in the country, though.
—
Tyler Everett, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Mar. 2026
But the if of the team’s health looms.
—Benjamin Royer, Oc Register, 18 Feb. 2026
The if-then paradigm needs to be simplified.
—Michael Isaacson, Sun Sentinel, 6 Jan. 2026
But even if the prison system reopens those beds — a big if, experts noted — Colorado will still be 230 to 440 beds short in the coming years, according to the 159-page report Brakke presented to the budget committee Friday.
—Shelly Bradbury, Denver Post, 24 Dec. 2025
With that in mind, even if Cooper succeeds in winning over city leaders—a big if—the potential challenges in leveraging Champions Point’s biggest selling point may only further stymie Cooper in turning the long-unsellable property into something people will pay to visit.
—Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 15 Dec. 2025
If Florida is out of the way due to missing Aleksander Barkov (still a big if), the Atlantic really opens up.
—Sean Gentille, New York Times, 7 Oct. 2025
The two eventually form an intergenerational friendship that’s genuine, even if its foundation is based on a white lie, and you brace for the inevitable moment — not an if, but a when — of Eleanor getting busted.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 24 Sep. 2025
If the Nefes report proves true—and again that’s a big if—and Russia seeks to buy back S-400s from Turkey to keep its traditional customers onside, that could further bode ill for a delivery of Su-35s or any other advanced weapons systems to Tehran.
—Paul Iddon, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025
Tyler Everett, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Mar. 2026
But the if of the team’s health looms.
—Benjamin Royer, Oc Register, 18 Feb. 2026
The if-then paradigm needs to be simplified.
—Michael Isaacson, Sun Sentinel, 6 Jan. 2026
But even if the prison system reopens those beds — a big if, experts noted — Colorado will still be 230 to 440 beds short in the coming years, according to the 159-page report Brakke presented to the budget committee Friday.
—Shelly Bradbury, Denver Post, 24 Dec. 2025
With that in mind, even if Cooper succeeds in winning over city leaders—a big if—the potential challenges in leveraging Champions Point’s biggest selling point may only further stymie Cooper in turning the long-unsellable property into something people will pay to visit.
—Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 15 Dec. 2025
If Florida is out of the way due to missing Aleksander Barkov (still a big if), the Atlantic really opens up.
—Sean Gentille, New York Times, 7 Oct. 2025
The two eventually form an intergenerational friendship that’s genuine, even if its foundation is based on a white lie, and you brace for the inevitable moment — not an if, but a when — of Eleanor getting busted.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 24 Sep. 2025
If the Nefes report proves true—and again that’s a big if—and Russia seeks to buy back S-400s from Turkey to keep its traditional customers onside, that could further bode ill for a delivery of Su-35s or any other advanced weapons systems to Tehran.
—Paul Iddon, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for if
Noun
-
In a Wednesday news conference, Mayor Brandon Scott offered his condolences to Oduor’s family and encouraged residents to wait for the results of the full police investigation before making assumptions about what could have prevented Oduor’s death.—
Lily Carey,
Baltimore Sun,
15 Apr. 2026
-
The assumption was that hardware mattered most.—
J. Kyle Foster,
USA Today,
15 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Online newspapers have pushed alerts with the smallest developments about Timmy's health including updates on its bad skin condition, which is related to the Baltic Sea's low salt content.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 Apr. 2026
-
As a condition of her release, Portugues is prohibited from possessing or using any type of gun.—
Abby Dodge,
CBS News,
16 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
In theory, this could be a standard beauty modification, like Ingres tossing a few extra vertebrae into a naked back.—
Zachary Fine,
New Yorker,
20 Apr. 2026
-
But the general idea is that there is a lot of stuff in the universe that is not the familiar matter that we are made of, and there are theories in which this stuff is not entirely benign.—
Richard Edwards,
Space.com,
19 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
However, there is some talk that the bill, which is set to be taken up by the House this week, could have one of its most important provisions — having a neutral arbitrator hear cases involving teacher terminations — removed.—
Rep. Nick Menapace,
Hartford Courant,
21 Apr. 2026
-
That provision, however, was stripped out.—
Nick Coltrain,
Denver Post,
21 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Where the show’s values were once givens, almost diorama labels, now they’re presented as more fugitive and unstable, what its characters would hope the world to be.—
Jackson McHenry,
Vulture,
16 Oct. 2025
-
Among geologists, there are givens: Humans don’t build things that last a million years.—
Teri Sforza,
Oc Register,
8 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Under the bill, Human Services would be tasked with developing rules around everything from training and background checks to treatment plans, staffing ratios, reporting requirements, and building safety.—
Shaun Boyd,
CBS News,
16 Apr. 2026
-
However, the bill to remove some vaccine requirements that appeared in this year’s legislative session failed to advance.—
Cindy Krischer Goodman,
The Orlando Sentinel,
16 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The original host-city agreements, which were signed in 2018, included a stipulation that fans would have free transport to and from games.—
John Cassidy,
New Yorker,
20 Apr. 2026
-
The brothers agreed to a plea bargain that included hefty fines and stipulations regarding travel.—
Nasha Smith,
PEOPLE,
18 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Next, the researchers aim to generalize their approach to other quantum processes and refine it for more complex, real-world conditions—where uncertainty is the rule, not the exception.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
19 Apr. 2026
-
There are, however, some exceptions—Michter’s 25 and Celebration Sour Mash (the latter is a blend of ages) push this boundary successfully.—
Jonah Flicker,
Robb Report,
19 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“If.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/if. Accessed 23 Apr. 2026.
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