If or whether

Question

If or whether and are these both naturally?

1 What difference does it make whether/if I give it to you now or later.

2 What's the difference whether/if I give it to you now or later.

How would you say this please?

3 It's the same thing if/whether we eat here or there.

Thank you

Rover_KE · Accepted Answer

1 and 2 sound natural with either word.

3 would sound more natural as 'It doesn't matter if/whether we eat here or there'.

Here's a more detailed explanation:

7.1. IF and WHETHER

73. I don't know if/whether Mila is coming tomorrow (or not).
74. I am going out if Mila is coming.
75. I am going out whether Mila is coming or not.
At first sight there is little difference in meaning in [73] whether we use IF or WHETHER, though
only with the latter does or not have an acceptable alternative position immediately preceding
Mila. In [74], however, WHETHER cannot be used, and in [75] most native speakers would find IF
unusual. There is clearly, therefore, a difference in meaning between the two words.
With IF we are considering the uncertainty of a happening or state. This means that we are not
certain of its actual happening or state: its non-happening or non-state is a possibility, but that
negative situation is not explicitly (or implicitly) considered. Indeed, the negative situation may
change the meaning of the utterance as a whole. In [74], the speaker states only that in the event
of Mila's coming, he is going out. The implication that in the event of Mila's not-coming the
speaker will not go out may be intended by the speaker, or such an inference may be drawn by
the listener, but it is impossible to say for sure. We have a double uncertainty: about the
happening or state in the IF-clause, and about the consequence stated in the other clause in the
event of non-happening or non-state.
With WHETHER, on the other hand, the negative situation is always implicitly (and often explicitly)
stated, and may change the meaning of the utterance as a whole. In [75] there is certainty that
the speaker is going out. The single uncertainty is about the happening or state in the WHETHERclause. The two utterances are fundamentally different in meaning, a necessity highlighted by the
need to add or not to the WHETHER-clause [75] and the need not to add it to the IF-clause [74].
[73] presents a different situation. Here, there is still the same uncertainty about whether Mila is
coming. However if the speaker does not know about her coming, then he clearly does not know
about her not-coming. Knowing is not a consequence of coming, as opposed to going out in
[74], which is a consequence of coming. Thus, while the difference in meaning between IF and
WHETHER is the same as ever, the differences in the practical results of the difference in
meanings are minimal. This explains why we can use either word in such non-consequential
statements, and also why if not is acceptable (or omissible) with both words.

(gramorak.com)

Rover

If or whether

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