if'n

English

Contraction

if'n

  1. (archaic) Contraction of if and when.

Etymology 2

Uncertain.[1] The spelling ef'n is attested since at least 1909.[2] Perhaps a compound of if and an (“if”) (a variant, attested since Middle English, of and (“if”); compare an if and gin (“if”));[1][2] if an is attested since at least the 1700s.[2] Alternatively, perhaps a compound of if and -in', generalized from conjunctional uses of considering, excepting, and so on,[1] or of if and -en as in offen (“off”),[3] outen (“out”)[3] (which goes back to Old English ūtan), etc. Compare less'n. Lastly, as with the etymology above, it may be a contraction of if (and) when.

Conjunction

if'n

  1. (chiefly Southern US, South Midland US, and some dialects in British) If.
    • 2007, Robert H. Henry, Bowden's South Pass Justice, page 311:
      We'll[sic] I'm try'n to cooperate and let you know where I'll be if n you need me!
Alternative forms

References
  1. “iffen”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
  2. Grammarphobia: iffen, which also says the Dictionary of American Regional English speculates that if and is the origin
  3. Paul Dickerson Brandes, Jeutonne Brewer, Dialect clash in America: issues and answers (1977), page 296: The en suffix also appears in words other than verbs, e.g., outen in "Git outen thishere house"[,] offen in "I done bought it offen him fer tin cints"; and iffen in "Iffen you'uz to tell me he'uz daid, I wou'nt believe ye."

Anagrams
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