conditional

American  

[kuhn-dish-uh-nl] / kənˈdɪʃ ə nl /

adjective

1. imposing, containing, subject to, or depending on a condition or conditions; not absolute; made or allowed on certain terms.

   conditional acceptance.

   Synonyms:

   relative, contingent, dependent

2. Grammar. (of a sentence, clause, mood, or word) involving or expressing a condition, as the first clause in the sentence If it rains, he won't go.

3. Logic.

   1. (of a proposition) asserting that the existence or occurrence of one thing or event depends on the existence or occurrence of another thing or event; hypothetical.

   2. (of a syllogism) containing at least one conditional proposition as a premise.

4. Mathematics. (of an inequality) true for only certain values of the variable, as x + 3 > 0 is only true for real numbers greater than −3.

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noun

• conditionals
  plural

1. Grammar.

   1. (in some languages) a mood, tense, or other category used in expressing conditions, often corresponding to an English verb phrase beginning with would, as Spanish comería “he would eat.”

   2. a sentence, clause, or word expressing a condition.

conditional British  

/ kənˈdɪʃənəl /

adjective

1. depending on other factors; not certain

2. grammar (of a clause, conjunction, form of a verb, or whole sentence) expressing a condition on which something else is contingent: " If he comes " is a conditional clause in the sentence " If he comes I shall go "

3. 1. (of an equation or inequality) true for only certain values of the variable: x ² –1 = x + 1 is a conditional equation, only true for x = 2 or –1

   2. (of an infinite series) divergent when the absolute values of the terms are considered

4. Also: hypothetical.  logic (of a proposition) consisting of two component propositions associated by the words if…then so that the proposition is false only when the antecedent is true and the consequent false. Usually written: p → q or p ⊃ q, where p is the antecedent, q the consequent, and → or ⊃ symbolizes implies

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noun

1. grammar

   1. a conditional form of a verb

   2. a conditional clause or sentence

2. logic a conditional proposition

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• conditionality
  noun
• nonconditional
  adjective
• conditionally
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• conditionals
  plural

Etymology

Origin of conditional

1350–1400; Middle English condicionel < Anglo-French, Middle French < Late Latin condiciōnālis, equivalent to condiciōn- (stem of condiciō ) condition + -ālis -al ¹

Explanation

Something conditional is dependent on other factors. You might receive a conditional offer of acceptance from a college, depending on your high school graduation and your maintaining passing grades. For a clue to the meaning of conditional, look at an opposing term: unconditional surrender, which means someone surrenders and doesn't ask for anything in return. In a conditional surrender, someone will give up only if certain things happen. A conditional agreement is dependent on other factors: a company could make a conditional hire, meaning they'll hire you only if you finish your degree and take a blood test. When you see the word conditional, think "It depends."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

conditional conditionals

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued a preliminary conditional approval last week to establish World Liberty Trust Co., which will be a national trust bank responsible for issuing USD1, a stablecoin.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026

The department will weigh in on the conditional use permit at a later date.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026

He was released and issued with a conditional caution.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

The European Union gave the deal conditional approval last month.

From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026

Likewise with dice: the probability of rolling a 7 with a pair of dice is 1/6, the same as the conditional probability of rolling a 7 given that the three previous rolls have been 7s.

From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos

"They also can repair damage to their DNA caused by radiation and other extreme conditionals or chemicals."

From Salon ● Sep. 1, 2024

In the courtroom his lawyer read out a carefully written, complicated text, full of caveats, conditionals and the passive voice.

From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2023

If–then statements in logic are called conditionals and are testable.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 15, 2022

“What Slavic 101 couldn’t name didn’t exist,” Batuman writes; Nina’s reality remains untroubled by conditionals and subjunctives.

From Slate ● Mar. 20, 2017

Fortunately, there is a formula for writing graceful conditionals, and it becomes clear once you recognize two distinctions.

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker

Related Words

• limited
• provisional
• restrictive
• tentative