Definitions for ifɪf

Random House Webster's College Dictionary

if^*ɪf(conj.)

in case that; granting or supposing that; on condition that:
If I were you, I wouldn't worry. I'll go if you do.
Category: Function Word
even though:
an enthusiastic if small audience.
Category: Function Word
whether:
She asked if I knew Spanish.
Category: Function Word
(used to introduce an exclamatory phrase):
If only Dad could see me now!
Category: Function Word
that:
I'm sorry if you don't agree.
Category: Function Word
(n.)a supposition; uncertain possibility.
a condition or stipulation:
There are too many ifs in his agreement.

Idioms for if:

ifs, ands, or buts,qualifications or excuses.
Category: Common Vocabulary, Idiom

^* Usage: if meaning “whether,” as in I haven't decided if I'll go, is sometimes criticized, but the usage has been standard in English for a long time and is found in Shakespeare, Dryden, and the King James Bible.

Origin of if:

bef. 900; ME, var. of yif, OE gif, gef

Kernerman English Learner's Dictionary

if(conjunction)ɪf
indicates sth happens when sth else happens or exists
If he can save enough money he's going to travel around Europe.; You won't get paid if you don't go to work.
ifɪf
whether
We asked him if he wanted to come to the party.; I'm not sure if this is good news or not.
ifɪf
indicates when sth always happens
If I drink too much coffee, I start to feel dizzy.; She'll be grumpy tomorrow if she goes to bed too late.
ifɪf
indicates sb's feelings about a possibility
I apologize if the music was too loud.; I don't care if she never speaks to us again.
ifɪf
indicates you are about to give advice
If I were you I'd take an umbrella.
ifɪf
indicates regret that a situation is not different
If only she'd told me she was in trouble. I could have helped.

Wiktionary

if(Noun)
#
if(Noun)
An uncertainty, possibility, condition, doubt etc.
if(Conjunction)
Supposing that, assuming that, in the circumstances that;
If it rains, I will get wet.
if(Conjunction)
Supposing that;
I'd prefer it if you took your shoes off.
if(Conjunction)
Although;
He was a great friend, if a little stingy at the bar.
if(Conjunction)
In the event that a statement is true (a programming statement that acts in a similar manner).
If A, then B, else C.
if(Conjunction)
Whether;
I don't know if I want to go or not.
if(Conjunction)
Even if; even in the circumstances that.

Origin: yif, yef, from gif. Cognate with ef and efte (with the variants ifte and ef).

Webster Dictionary

If(u)
in case that; granting, allowing, or supposing that; -- introducing a condition or supposition
If(u)
whether; -- in dependent questions

The Nuttall Encyclopedia

If
an islet in the Gulf of Marseilles, with a castle built by Francis I., and afterwards used as a State prison.

The Roycroft Dictionary

if
1. A tightrope that stretches from But to But. 2. A small, magical, automatic hinge that can swing the doors of Chance in any direction. 3. A fatality endowed with free will. 4. The verbal sword of Damocles. 5. A dizzy precipice at the end of every declarative sentence. 6. A pole around which the future and the past play hide-and-seek. 7. The vorspiel to the piker's threnody. _E. g._ (Scene: a narrow bridge.): "Let me pass, fellow! my name is Must, and I desire to cross." If (standing in the middle of the bridge): "You damn fool, don't you see I am the end of the bridge? There is no Must nor Might that can go beyond me."