adverb / conjunction · neutral
otherwise
UK/ˈʌðəwaɪz/US/ˈʌðərwaɪz/OTH·er·wise
used to indicate the consequence if something does not happen, or to contrast an alternative
Examples
“You must submit the form; otherwise, your application will be rejected.”
“The study was small; otherwise the findings are consistent with earlier work.”
“Finish your homework now; otherwise you won't be able to go out tonight.”
Band 8 sentence
“We must agree on a timeline now; otherwise, the project risks significant delays.”
Collocations
- ..., otherwise, ...
- do X; otherwise Y
Word family
Common mistakes
The team trained hard; otherwise they won.→The team trained hard; otherwise, they would not have won.
He failed the exam. Otherwise, he tried hard.→He failed the exam; nevertheless, he tried hard.
Say it for a higher band
5or else→6however→7+otherwise
Synonyms
or else
Easily confused
or else
“Finish your work now or else you will miss the deadline.”
Related words
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In Contrast
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