else

From Middle English ells, elles, from Old English elles (“other, otherwise, different”), from Proto-Germanic *aljas (“of another, of something else”), genitive of *aljaz (“other”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂élios, from *h₂el- (“other”). Cognate with Old Frisian elles (“other”), Old High German elles, ellies (“other”), Danish eller (“or”), Danish ellers (“otherwise”), Swedish eljes, eljest (“or else, otherwise”), Norwegian elles (“else, otherwise”), Gothic 𐌰𐌻𐌾𐌹𐍃 (aljis, “other”), Latin alius (“other, another”), Ancient Greek ἄλλος (állos), αἶλος (aîlos) (Arcadocypriot), (Modern Greek αλλιώς (alliós, “otherwise, else”)).

• (Received Pronunciation, US) IPA^(key): /ɛls/
• (colloquial) IPA^(key): /ɛlts/

• Audio (US)

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• Audio

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• Rhymes: -ɛls

else (not comparable)

1. (postpositive, used only with indefinite or interrogative pronouns) Other; in addition to previously mentioned items.

   The instructor is busy. Can anyone else help me?

   • c. 1610-11, William Shakespeare, The Tempest, Act I scene ii:

     Prospero:

     Thou hast done well, fine Ariel. Follow me;

     Hark what thou else shalt do me.

   • 2013, Keith T. Krawczynski, Daily Life in the Colonial City

     As with most else in society, early Americans believed that health and healing were in God's hand.

• This adjective usually follows an indefinite or interrogative pronoun, as in the examples above. In other cases, the adjective other is typically used.

else (not comparable)

1. (follows interrogative adverbs) Otherwise, if not.

   How else (=in what other way) can it be done?

   I'm busy Friday; when else (=what other time) works for you?

• (otherwise): This word frequently follows interrogative adverbs, such as how, why, and when, as well as the derived however, whyever, and whenever.

• otherwise

• or else

else

1. For otherwise; or else.

   Then the Wronskian of f and g must be nonzero, else they could not be linearly independent.

   • 1903, Jack London, The Call of the Wild, Grosset & Dunlap, page 44:

     […] and his first experience taught him an unforgetable lesson. It is true, it was a vicarious experience, else he would not have lived to profit by it.

2. (computing, in many programming languages and pseudocode) but if the condition of the previous if clause is false, do the following.

• and
• if
• not
• or
• then

• EELS, ELEs, Slee, eels, lees, lese, seel, sele

else f

1. plural of elsa

• lese