ar ..., ar ...

Whether ... or ...

Level 4

Repeat ar before each choice to say whether ... or ...: Nesvarbu, ar lyja, ar sninga. (It doesn't matter whether it rains or snows.)

How It Works

1. It does not matter which.

  • Nesvarbu, ar lyja, ar sninga, jis bėgioja. (Whether it rains or snows, he goes running.)
  • Man vis tiek, ar valgysime namie, ar restorane. (It's all the same to me whether we eat at home or at a restaurant.)
  • Ar patinka, ar ne, reikia dirbti. (Whether you like it or not, you have to work.)

2. Not knowing which.

  • Nežinau, ar jis ateis, ar ne. (I don't know whether he will come or not.)
  • Paklausk, ar jie važiuos traukiniu, ar autobusu. (Ask whether they will go by train or by bus.)

3. Direct questions. In a question, the pair offers a choice: Ar eisi su mumis, ar liksi namie? (Are you coming with us, or are you staying home?) See Or: Arba and Ar.

4. Commas. A comma comes before the second ar. The whole ar ..., ar ... part is also separated from the main clause with commas: Nesvarbu, ar lyja, ar sninga, jis bėgioja.

5. Ar, not jei. English can say if here, but Lithuanian uses ar, never jei. A common way to express either ... or in a statement is arba ..., arba .... For no matter what, see kad ir kas, kad ir kaip.

Examples (6)

  1. Nesvarbu, ar lyja, ar sninga, jis bėgioja.

    Whether it rains or snows, he goes running.

    After nesvarbu, the pair means that either way the result is the same.

  2. Nežinau, ar jis ateis, ar ne.

    I don't know whether he will come or not.

    Ar ne adds the option or not.

  3. Ar patinka, ar ne, reikia dirbti.

    Whether you like it or not, you have to work.

    The pair can open the sentence without nesvarbu.

  4. Paklausk, ar jie važiuos traukiniu, ar autobusu.

    Ask whether they will go by train or by bus.

    The choices can be single words: traukiniu, autobusu.

  5. Man vis tiek, ar valgysime namie, ar restorane.

    It's all the same to me whether we eat at home or at a restaurant.

    Vis tiek (all the same) works like nesvarbu.

  6. Ar eisi su mumis, ar liksi namie?

    Are you coming with us, or are you staying home?

    In a direct question, the pair offers a choice.

Common Mistakes

  • Using jei for whether, as with English if.

    Nežinau, jei jis ateis, ar ne.
    Nežinau, ar jis ateis, ar ne.

    English if can mean whether, but Lithuanian always uses ar here. Jei is only for conditions.

  • Leaving out the comma before the second ar.

    Nesvarbu, ar lyja ar sninga, jis bėgioja.
    Nesvarbu, ar lyja, ar sninga, jis bėgioja.

    When ar is repeated, a comma comes before the second one.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

ar ..., ar ...Level 4Whether ... or ...

Learn This First

Repeated ar introduces alternatives within an indirect question or regardless construction.

Words in This Pattern