# else

> English word · Adjective · IPA /ɛls/ · frequency rank #412

## Definitions
1. Other; in addition to previously mentioned items.

## Etymology
From Middle English ells, elles, from Old English elles (“other, otherwise, different”), from Proto-West Germanic *alljas, from Proto-Germanic *aljas (“of another, of something else”), genitive of *aljaz (“other”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂élyos, from *h₂el- (“other”).
Cognate with Old Frisian elles (“other”), Old High German elles, ellies (“other”), Danish eller (“or”), Danish ellers (“otherwise”), Swedish eljes, eljest (“or else, otherwise”), Norwegian elles (“else, otherwise”), Gothic 𐌰𐌻𐌾𐌹𐍃 (aljis, “other”), Latin alius (“other, another”), Ancient Greek ἄλλος (állos), Arcadocypriot αἶλος (aîlos), modern Greek αλλιώς (alliós, “otherwise, else”), Proto-Slavic *olni.

## Easily confused with
- **ES** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-es)
- **eye** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-eye)
- **eve** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-eve)
- **est** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-est)
- **EPS** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-eps)
- **EMS** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-ems)
- **ESA** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-esa)
- **Eos** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-eos)
- **Ely** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-ely)
- **ERS** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-ers)
- **ere** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-ere)
- **ESL** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-esl)
- **ETS** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-ets)
- **ESC** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-esc)
- **ese** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-ese)
- **exe** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-exe)
- **ewe** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-ewe)
- **eyre** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-eyre)
- **Evie** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-evie)
- **esse** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/else-vs-esse)

## Common misspellings (5)
`eles`, `ellse`, `elsse`, `esle`, `lese`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/else