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otherwise - 4 dictionary results

oth⋅er⋅wise

  [uhth-er-wahyz]
Use otherwise in a Sentence
–adverb
1. under other circumstances: Otherwise they may get broken.
2. in another manner; differently: Under the circumstances, I can't believe otherwise.
3. in other respects: an otherwise happy life.
–conjunction
4. or else; if not: Button up your overcoat, otherwise you'll catch cold.
–adjective
5. other or different; of another nature or kind: We hoped his behavior would be otherwise.
6. in other or different circumstances: An otherwise pleasure had become a grinding chore.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME; OE (on) ōthre wīsan (in) another manner. See other, -wise
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To otherwise
oth·er·wise   (ŭth'ər-wīz')   
adv.  
  1. In another way; differently: She thought otherwise.
  2. Under other circumstances: Otherwise I might have helped.
  3. In other respects: an otherwise logical mind.
adj.  Other than supposed; different: The evidence is otherwise.

[Middle English, from Old English (on) ōthere wīsan, (in) another manner : ōthre, dative of ōther, other + wīsan, dative of wīse, manner; see wise2.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Otherwise

Oth"er*wise`\, adv. [Other + wise manner.]

1. In a different manner; in another way, or in other ways; differently; contrarily. --Chaucer.

Thy father was a worthy prince, And merited, alas! a better fate; But Heaven thought otherwise. --Addison.

2. In other respects.

It is said, truly, that the best men otherwise are not always the best in regard of society. --Hooker.

3. In different circumstances; under other conditions; as, I am engaged, otherwise I would accept.

Note: Otherwise, like so and thus, may be used as a substitute for the opposite of a previous adjective, noun, etc.

Let no man think me a fool; if otherwise, yet as a fool receive me. --2 Cor. xi. 16.

Her eyebrows . . . rather full than otherwise. --Fielding.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : otherwise
Spanish: aparte de eso, por lo demás,
German: ansonsten,
Japanese: それ以外は
More Translations »

otherwise 
contracted from O.E. phrase on oðre wisan "in the other manner" (see other + -wise), which in M.E. became oþre wise, and c.1330 oþerwise.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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