"if'n" meaning in English

See if'n in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Conjunction

Etymology: Uncertain. The spelling ef'n is attested since at least 1909. Perhaps a compound of if and an (“if”) (a variant, attested since Middle English, of and (“if”); compare an if and gin (“if”)); if an is attested since at least the 1700s. Alternatively, perhaps a compound of if and -in', generalized from conjunctional uses of considering, excepting, and so on, or of if and -en as in offen (“off”), outen (“out”) (which goes back to Old English ūtan), etc. Compare less'n. Lastly, as with the etymology above, it may be a contraction of if (and) when. Etymology templates: {{unc|en}} Uncertain, {{m|en|if}} if, {{m|en|an|id=conj|t=if}} an (“if”), {{m|en|and||if}} and (“if”), {{m|en|an if}} an if, {{m|en|gin||if}} gin (“if”), {{m|en|-in'}} -in', {{m|en|considering}} considering, {{m|en|excepting}} excepting, {{m|en|-en}} -en, {{m|en|offen||off}} offen (“off”), {{m|en|outen||out}} outen (“out”), {{noncognate|ang|ūtan}} Old English ūtan, {{m|en|less'n}} less'n Head templates: {{en-con}} if'n
  1. (chiefly Southern US, Midland US, and some dialects in Britain) If. Tags: Southern-US, dialectal, in Britain Synonyms: iffen, ifen, effen, ef'n
    Sense id: en-if'n-en-conj-elBpf-Sw Categories (other): British English, Midland US English, Southern US English
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Etymology number: 2

Contraction

Head templates: {{head|en|contraction|head=}} if'n, {{en-cont}} if'n
  1. (archaic) Contraction of if and when. Tags: abbreviation, alt-of, archaic, contraction Alternative form of: if and when
    Sense id: en-if'n-en-contraction-mglcPg-D
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Etymology number: 1

Download JSON data for if'n meaning in English (3.3kB)

{
  "categories": [],
  "etymology_number": 1,
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "contraction",
        "head": ""
      },
      "expansion": "if'n",
      "name": "head"
    },
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "if'n",
      "name": "en-cont"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "contraction",
  "senses": [
    {
      "alt_of": [
        {
          "word": "if and when"
        }
      ],
      "categories": [],
      "glosses": [
        "Contraction of if and when."
      ],
      "id": "en-if'n-en-contraction-mglcPg-D",
      "links": [
        [
          "if",
          "if#English"
        ],
        [
          "and",
          "and#English"
        ],
        [
          "when",
          "when#English"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(archaic) Contraction of if and when."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "abbreviation",
        "alt-of",
        "archaic",
        "contraction"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "if'n"
}

{
  "categories": [],
  "etymology_number": 2,
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en"
      },
      "expansion": "Uncertain",
      "name": "unc"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "if"
      },
      "expansion": "if",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "an",
        "id": "conj",
        "t": "if"
      },
      "expansion": "an (“if”)",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "and",
        "3": "",
        "4": "if"
      },
      "expansion": "and (“if”)",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "an if"
      },
      "expansion": "an if",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gin",
        "3": "",
        "4": "if"
      },
      "expansion": "gin (“if”)",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "-in'"
      },
      "expansion": "-in'",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "considering"
      },
      "expansion": "considering",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "excepting"
      },
      "expansion": "excepting",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "-en"
      },
      "expansion": "-en",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "offen",
        "3": "",
        "4": "off"
      },
      "expansion": "offen (“off”)",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "outen",
        "3": "",
        "4": "out"
      },
      "expansion": "outen (“out”)",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "ang",
        "2": "ūtan"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English ūtan",
      "name": "noncognate"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "less'n"
      },
      "expansion": "less'n",
      "name": "m"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Uncertain. The spelling ef'n is attested since at least 1909. Perhaps a compound of if and an (“if”) (a variant, attested since Middle English, of and (“if”); compare an if and gin (“if”)); if an is attested since at least the 1700s. Alternatively, perhaps a compound of if and -in', generalized from conjunctional uses of considering, excepting, and so on, or of if and -en as in offen (“off”), outen (“out”) (which goes back to Old English ūtan), etc. Compare less'n. Lastly, as with the etymology above, it may be a contraction of if (and) when.",
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "if'n",
      "name": "en-con"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "conj",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "British English",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Midland US English",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Southern US English",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "2007, Robert H. Henry, Bowden's South Pass Justice, page 311",
          "text": "We'll I'm try'n to cooperate and let you know where I'll be if n you need me!",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "If."
      ],
      "id": "en-if'n-en-conj-elBpf-Sw",
      "links": [
        [
          "If",
          "if"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(chiefly Southern US, Midland US, and some dialects in Britain) If."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "iffen"
        },
        {
          "word": "ifen"
        },
        {
          "word": "effen"
        },
        {
          "word": "ef'n"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Southern-US",
        "dialectal",
        "in Britain"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "if'n"
}

{
  "categories": [
    "English conjunctions",
    "English contractions",
    "English lemmas",
    "English non-lemma forms",
    "English terms with unknown etymologies"
  ],
  "etymology_number": 1,
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "contraction",
        "head": ""
      },
      "expansion": "if'n",
      "name": "head"
    },
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "if'n",
      "name": "en-cont"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "contraction",
  "senses": [
    {
      "alt_of": [
        {
          "word": "if and when"
        }
      ],
      "categories": [
        "English contractions",
        "English terms with archaic senses"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Contraction of if and when."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "if",
          "if#English"
        ],
        [
          "and",
          "and#English"
        ],
        [
          "when",
          "when#English"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(archaic) Contraction of if and when."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "abbreviation",
        "alt-of",
        "archaic",
        "contraction"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "if'n"
}

{
  "categories": [
    "English conjunctions",
    "English lemmas",
    "English terms with unknown etymologies"
  ],
  "etymology_number": 2,
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en"
      },
      "expansion": "Uncertain",
      "name": "unc"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "if"
      },
      "expansion": "if",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "an",
        "id": "conj",
        "t": "if"
      },
      "expansion": "an (“if”)",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "and",
        "3": "",
        "4": "if"
      },
      "expansion": "and (“if”)",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "an if"
      },
      "expansion": "an if",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gin",
        "3": "",
        "4": "if"
      },
      "expansion": "gin (“if”)",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "-in'"
      },
      "expansion": "-in'",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "considering"
      },
      "expansion": "considering",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "excepting"
      },
      "expansion": "excepting",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "-en"
      },
      "expansion": "-en",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "offen",
        "3": "",
        "4": "off"
      },
      "expansion": "offen (“off”)",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "outen",
        "3": "",
        "4": "out"
      },
      "expansion": "outen (“out”)",
      "name": "m"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "ang",
        "2": "ūtan"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English ūtan",
      "name": "noncognate"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "less'n"
      },
      "expansion": "less'n",
      "name": "m"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Uncertain. The spelling ef'n is attested since at least 1909. Perhaps a compound of if and an (“if”) (a variant, attested since Middle English, of and (“if”); compare an if and gin (“if”)); if an is attested since at least the 1700s. Alternatively, perhaps a compound of if and -in', generalized from conjunctional uses of considering, excepting, and so on, or of if and -en as in offen (“off”), outen (“out”) (which goes back to Old English ūtan), etc. Compare less'n. Lastly, as with the etymology above, it may be a contraction of if (and) when.",
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "if'n",
      "name": "en-con"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "conj",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "British English",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "Midland US English",
        "Quotation templates to be cleaned",
        "Southern US English"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "2007, Robert H. Henry, Bowden's South Pass Justice, page 311",
          "text": "We'll I'm try'n to cooperate and let you know where I'll be if n you need me!",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "If."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "If",
          "if"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(chiefly Southern US, Midland US, and some dialects in Britain) If."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Southern-US",
        "dialectal",
        "in Britain"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "iffen"
    },
    {
      "word": "ifen"
    },
    {
      "word": "effen"
    },
    {
      "word": "ef'n"
    }
  ],
  "word": "if'n"
}

This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-04-17 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-04-01 using wiktextract (0b52755 and 5cb0836). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.