is there a difference between "check if" and "check whether"

[guest]

Hi All,
Can you please tell me if there is a difference in meaning or usage between :
check if and check whether.

 

[Tdol]

'Whether' tends to emphasise the existence of two choices- check whether they're coming or not.

 

[MikeNewYork]

Hi All,
Can you please tell me if there is a difference in meaning or usage between :
check if and check whether.

One sense of the word "if" is "whether". They are not always interchangeable, but they can be when there are two main options.

We want to know if/whether you can come.
Check his work and see if/whether it is correct or not.

 

[Tdol]

You can only use 'whether' before an infinitive. ;-)

 

[MikeNewYork]

You can only use 'whether' before an infinitive. ;-)

Huh? :?:

 

[Tdol]

I don't know if to do it. :cross:
I don't know whether to do it. :tick:

Hard to think of an example off-hand with 'check'. ;-)

 

[MikeNewYork]

I don't know if to do it. :cross:
I don't know whether to do it. :tick:

Hard to think of an example off-hand with 'check'. ;-)

Ah! I didn't realize you were referring to whether vs. if. I read that as a general statement.

 

[Tdol]

I must try to drop the Calvin Coolidge approach to brevity in posting. ;-)

 

[MikeNewYork]

I must try to drop the Calvin Coolidge approach to brevity in posting. ;-)

Silent Tdol just doesn't have a good ring to it.

A woman approaced Coolidge one evening and said that she had made a bet that she could get him to say more than two words. He said, "You lose." :lol: