else

1 of 2

adverb

ˈel(t)s 

1

a

: in a different manner or place or at a different time

how else could he have acted

here and nowhere else

b

: in an additional manner or place or at an additional time

where else is gold found

2

: if not : otherwise

leave or else you'll be sorry

—used absolutely to express a threat

do what I tell you or else

else

2 of 2

adjective

: other:

a

: being different in identity

it must have been somebody else

b

: being in addition

what else did he say?

Synonyms

Adverb

• differently
• other (than)
• otherwise

Adjective

• added
• additional
• another
• farther
• fresh
• further
• more
• other

Examples of else in a Sentence

Adverb

We decided to go someplace else for dinner.

if you could do it over again, how else would you have done it?

Adjective

is there anything else you would like to add to your list?

Recent Examples on the Web

Adverb

These are high-performing and technically decorated individuals who steal others’ glory, shoot down opposing ideas and prioritize their own success over everything else. —Phillimon Zongo, Forbes, 27 Dec. 2024

More than anything else during these past months, this election season has depleted our reservoir of peace and calm. —Judy Knotts, Austin American-Statesman, 27 Dec. 2024

Adjective

Parks, a Howard University commit, has lined up as receiver, running back, H-back, quarterback, punter and whatever else coach Karl Calhoun asks him to do. —Chris Hays, Orlando Sentinel, 15 Nov. 2024

One major character drops out of the picture only to show up later, briefly, as a dead body in the night, anonymous to everyone else onscreen but not to us. —Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 21 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adverb

Middle English elles, going back to Old English elles, adverbial use of genitive singular neuter of elle "other," going back to Germanic *alja- "other" (whence, with parallel formation, Old High German alles, elles "else," Gothic aljis), going back to Indo-European *h₂el-i̯o-, whence also Latin alius "other," Old Irish aile, Middle Welsh eil "second," Greek állos "other," Armenian ayl, Tocharian B allek "other, another"

Note: Excepting the frozen genitival constructions represented by Old English elles (cf. owiht elles, elles awiht, literally "aught of other" = "aught else"), the pronoun *alja- is marginally attested in Germanic languages outside of compounds (as Old English elcor, ellicor "else," Old High German ellihor "further," Old Norse elligar, ellar, ella "otherwise") and the initial element el- "other, foreign" (cf. Old English eleland "foreign country," Old High German elilenti "foreign"). G.E. Dunkel (Lexikon der indogermanischen Partikeln und Pronominalstämme) accepts the primary character of Indo-European *a and regards *ali̯o- as a thematization of *al-i "elsewhere." He rejects the presence of a laryngeal because *l-i, which he considers a variant of *al-i, shows no laryngeal in Greek lī́ān "exceedingly, very, too" and pálin "back" (where the a is not lengthened).

Adjective

Middle English elles, going back to Old English — more at else entry 1

First Known Use

Adverb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing else

• anybody else
• anyone else
• anywhere else
• apart from anything else
• if nothing else
• if/when all else fails
• nothing else
• nothing else for it
• not so much (something) as (something else)
• or else
• something else
• what else is new?

Kids Definition

else

1 of 2 adverb

ˈels 

1

: in a different or additional manner or place or at a different time

how else could it be done

where else can we meet

2

: if the facts are or were different : if not : otherwise

leave or else you'll be sorry

else

2 of 2 adjective

1

: being different in identity

somebody else

2

: being in addition

what else