Implication (If... Then / Conditional Statement)
Table of Content:
🧠 Understanding "If... Then" (Conditional Statements) —
Let’s learn something cool from logic today! It's called a Conditional Statement. Don’t worry — it’s super easy once you understand it with a fun example! 😊
🤔 What is a Conditional Statement?
A conditional statement tells us:
👉 “If something happens, then something else will happen.”
We write it like this:
If p, then q
(or in short: p → q)
-
The first part (p) is called the antecedent (it’s the “if” part).
-
The second part (q) is called the consequent (it’s the “then” part).
🌧 Real-Life Example:
Let’s take a simple sentence:
If it rains, then the ground will be wet.
Here’s how we break it:
-
p = It rains
-
q = The ground is wet
So the full sentence is:
If it rains (p), then the ground will be wet (q).
✅ When is it True or False?
Now let’s see when this sentence is true and when it is false.
We’ll look at all the possibilities:
| It rains? (p) | Ground wet? (q) | Is the statement "If it rains, then the ground will be wet" true? | Why? |
|---|---|---|---|
| ❌ No | ❌ No | ✅ Yes, it’s true | It didn’t rain, and the ground is dry — all good! |
| ❌ No | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes, it’s true | It didn’t rain, but maybe someone watered the ground. Still okay! |
| ✅ Yes | ❌ No | ❌ No, it’s false | It rained but the ground is dry — something is wrong! ❌ |
| ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes, it’s true | It rained and the ground is wet — just like expected! 😊 |
🧪 What’s the Rule?
A conditional statement (If p, then q) is:
-
❌ False only when: It rains (True), but the ground is dry (False)
-
✅ True in all other cases
🔢 In Short (Using True/False):
| p (It rains) | q (Ground wet) | p → q (If p, then q) |
|---|---|---|
| False | False | ✅ True |
| False | True | ✅ True |
| True | False | ❌ False |
| True | True | ✅ True |
🎉 Final Tip:
Think of conditional statements like promises.
-
If you promise to clean your room if your mom gives you ice cream, then:
-
If she gives you ice cream and you don’t clean your room — you broke your promise. ❌
-
In all other cases — your promise is not broken. ✅
-
🔢 Truth Table for p → q (Using 0 and 1)
| p | q | p → q |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1 | 1 | 1 |
📌 Rule Recap:
-
Only False (0) when p = 1 and q = 0
-
All other cases → True (1)