What Is a Conditional Statement in Math?
LINDA HINKLE
CLASS
A conditional statement in math is a statement in the if-then form. Conditional statements, often called conditionals for short, are used extensively in a form of logic called deductive reasoning. Students usually study conditionals and their variations in a high school geometry course.
1 Example
An example of a conditional statement is, "If it rains, then the grass will grow."
2 Features
The "if" part of a conditional statement is called the hypothesis, and the "then" part is called the conclusion. In the example presented earlier, the hypothesis is "it rains" and the conclusion is "the grass will grow."
3 Identification
The general form of a conditional statement is written as "if p, then q" where p represents the hypothesis and q represents the conclusion.
4 Misconceptions
A conditional statement doesn't necessarily have to contain the words "if" and "then." The previous example can be written as, "The grass will grow when it rains."
5 Considerations
Some conditional statements are true, and some are false. Sometimes it isn't known whether a conditional is true or false.
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