unless
Pronunciation: /ənˈlɛs/
The English word “unless” has 3 meanings listed here.
conjunction
- Except on a specified condition; if not.
- If not; used with counterfactual conditionals.
- Except if; used with hypothetical conditionals.
Etymology
From Middle English unlesse, earlier on lesse (modern on + less), from (not) on lesse (than) (“(not) on a less compelling condition (than)”). The quality of negation in the word and the lack of stress changed on to un-.
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Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.