or else
Idioms-
Otherwise, in different circumstances, as in Present your case now, or else you won't have a chance . [c. 1300]
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Regardless of any extenuating circumstances, no matter what, as in Be there on time or else! [Second half of 1800s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He added: "We need to understand how this breach could occur, or else risk it being repeated."
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
The pressure to make precisely the right choice — or else — is what’s gotten society’s bedsheets in a twist.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
Either shares of semiconductors and other AI infrastructure plays would be up, or else it would be the “Magnificent Seven” and everything else.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 16, 2026
However, as C.K.’s supporters love to point out, he was never charged with anything, and even he knows he’d better mind that gap or else.
From Salon ● Jul. 3, 2026
She either went to the library and looked at the National Geographic or else just roamed around and thought some more.
From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
