Meanings
else1
- not comparablepostpositionalOther; in addition to previously mentioned items.
When all else fails, read the instructions.
4 more examples
The instructor is busy. Can anyone else help me?
Whatever else she may be, she is not a surgeon.
Prospero: Thou hast done well, fine Ariel. Follow me; Hark what thou else shalt do me.
1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene ii]As with most else in society, early Americans believed that health and healing were in God's hand.
2013, Keith T. Krawczynski, Daily Life in the Colonial City
- not comparableusually follows interrogative adverbsOtherwise, if not.
How else (= in what other way) can it be done?
2 more examples
I'm busy Friday; when else (= what other time) works for you?
The crust of ice on the else rippling brook was so transparent, and so thin in texture, that the lively water might of its own free will have stopped—in Tom’s glad mind it had—to look upon the lovely morning.
1842 December – 1844 July, Charles Dickens, The Life and Adventures of Martin Chuzzlewit, London: Chapman and Hall, […], published 1844, →OCLCSynonyms: otherwise
- For otherwise; or else.
Then the Wronskian of f and g must be nonzero, else they could not be linearly independent.
1 more example
He had never seen dogs fight as these wolfish creatures fought, 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.
1903 July, Jack London, “The Law of Club and Fang”, in The Call of the Wild, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., →OCLC, page 44
Else2
- A surname.
Synonyms & antonyms
adverbOtherwise, if not.
Origin
else · adjective, adverb, conjunction
- Proto-Indo-European*h₂élyos
- Proto-Germanic*aljas“of another, of something else”
- Proto-West Germanic*alljas
- Old Englishelles“other, otherwise, different”
- Middle Englishells
- Englishelse
From Middle English ells, elles, from Old English elles (“other, otherwise, different”), from Proto-West Germanic *alljas, from Proto-Germanic *aljas (“of another, of something else”), genitive of *aljaz (“other”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂élyos, 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), Arcadocypriot αἶλος (aîlos), modern Greek αλλιώς (alliós, “otherwise, else”), Proto-Slavic *olni.
More words from Middle English, Old English, Proto-West Germanic
Full word history & related roots →Else · proper noun
- Proto-West Germanic*aliʀu“alder”
- EnglishElse
* As an English surname, spelling variant of Ell. * As a north German surname, of Low German origin, from Proto-West Germanic *aliʀu (“alder”), comparable to Dutch els.
More words from Proto-West Germanic
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic غَيْر, آخَر
- غَيْر (ḡayr)other
- آخَر (ʔāḵar)other
- وَإِلَا (wa-ʔilā)for otherwise — see also or else
Bulgarian иначе, освен това
- иначе (inače)word that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- освен това (osven tova)word that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
Catalan més, altre
- mésother
- altreother
Czech jiný, ostatní
- jinýother
- ostatníother
Danish ellers
- ellersword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
Dutch zoniet, anders
- zonietword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- andersword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- in het andere gevalword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
Esperanto alie
- alieword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
Finnish muu, muuten
- muuother
- muutenword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
French d'autre, sinon
- d'autreother
- sinonword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- autrementword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- autrementfor otherwise — see also or else
- sinonfor otherwise — see also or else
German anders, sonst
- andersother
- sonstother
- andererother
- sonstword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- andersword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- andernfallsword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- ansonstenword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- andernfallsfor otherwise — see also or else
- ansonstenfor otherwise — see also or else
- sonstfor otherwise — see also or else
Greek αλλιώς
- αλλιώς (alliós)word that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
Hungarian más, máshogy
- másother
- máshogyword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- máshogyanword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- máskéntword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- másképpword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- máskorword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
Italian altro
- altroword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
Japanese 然も無くば
- 然も無くば (samonakuba)word that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
Latin alius, alioqui
- aliusother
- alioquiword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
Lithuanian o dar
- o darword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
Polish inny, inaczej
- innyother
- inaczejword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
Portuguese mais, senão
- maisother
- senãoword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- em vez deword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- além dissoword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- senãofor otherwise — see also or else
Romanian altceva, altcineva
- altcevaother
- altcinevaother
Russian ещё, ина́че
- ещё (ješčó)other
- ина́че (ináče)word that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
Slovak iný, inak
- inýother
- inakword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
Spanish más, más
- másother
- másword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- sinoword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- sinofor otherwise — see also or else
Swedish annat, annars
- annatother
- annarsword that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- annarsfor otherwise — see also or else
Tamil வேறு, இல்லையெனில்
- வேறு (vēṟu)word that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- இல்லையெனில் (illaiyeṉil)for otherwise — see also or else
Yiddish אַנישט, אַניט
- אַנישט (anisht)word that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
- אַניט (anit)word that implies any result with the exception of the one being referred to
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with else
All rhymes →Anagrams
Cite this entry
else. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/else
“else.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/else. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “else,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/else.
Source: else on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.