Read along with the three podcasts, or open the full dictionary entry for Provided for the definition, Arabic meaning, synonyms and example sentences.
Narrator: Today's word is "Provided" — conjunction, pronounced /prəˈvaɪdɪd/, with the stress on "vid".
Narrator: Provided means on the condition that, or as long as something happens.
Narrator: In plain English, provided that means if — but with the sense that one thing will happen only if another condition is met.
Narrator: It comes from the Latin providere, meaning to look ahead or foresee, from pro meaning before and videre meaning to see.
Narrator: "You may go, provided you finish your work" describes permission that depends on a condition being met first.
Narrator: It differs from if because provided implies a specific condition that must be satisfied, whereas if is more general.
Narrator: "Provided that the weather holds" is a sense meaning only as long as the good weather continues.
Narrator: Law, contracts, rules and everyday conversation all rely on the word provided.
Narrator: So remember: provided means on the condition that, from the Latin for looking ahead.
Speaker A: Is provided the same as if?
Speaker B: Close! PROVIDED comes from the Latin providere, meaning to look ahead, so it means on the condition that — a stronger, more specific sense than plain if.
Speaker A: So it's like setting a rule?
Speaker B: Exactly — do this and that will follow!
Speaker A: Example sentences?
Speaker B: "You can borrow the car, provided you drive carefully"; "entry is free, provided you arrive before noon"; "he'll come, provided he's well" — a favour, a deal and a condition.
Speaker A: Common mistakes?
Speaker B: Don't drop the that if the sentence is ambiguous, because provided that can clarify the condition, especially in formal writing.
Speaker A: Close relatives?
Speaker B: "If" the everyday cousin, "as long as" the informal twin, "on condition that" the formal alternative. The word keeps its conditional charm!
Speaker B: Let's use "provided" in AI prompts — useful for contract-drafting tools and terms-of-service generators.
Speaker A: So a prompt could frame a condition?
Speaker B: Right. For a legal app, you'd write:
Prompt: Write a short clause stating that a refund is available provided the item is returned within thirty days, naming one condition.
Speaker A: How about a policy tool?
Speaker B: Ask the model to draft a rule:
Prompt: Draft a workplace policy line stating that remote work is allowed provided core hours are kept, mentioning one check.
Speaker A: Could it help with a booking bot?
Speaker B: Yes, you can frame an offer:
Prompt: Summarise in two sentences that a discount applies provided the booking is made a fortnight ahead, naming one benefit.
Speaker A: One more?
Speaker B: For a teaching chatbot, try this:
Prompt: Write a short rule for students stating that homework is accepted provided it is submitted before the bell, citing one consequence.
Provided — meaning in Arabic & definition More P courses GL Dictionary