Biconditional statement meaning – UGC NET Question

A biconditional statement links two propositions in such a way that each implies the other. The form "p if and only if q" means that p is true exactly when q is true and false exactly when q is false. This captures a strong equivalence relation between the two. Therefore the compound statement described in the stem is called a biconditional.

Option A:
Option A, disjunctive, refers to a statement formed with "or", which is true when at least one of its disjuncts is true. It does not require mutual implication or matching truth values in the way a biconditional does. Hence disjunctive is not the correct answer.

Option B:
Option B, conjunctive, denotes a statement formed with "and" where both components must be true, but it does not capture the idea that each condition guarantees the other’s truth. Conjunction lacks the mutual equivalence of "if and only if".

Option C:
Option C, conditional, refers to one-way implication of the form "if p, then q". While a biconditional includes two such conditionals, the term conditional alone does not express the bi-directional nature specified in the question.

Option D:
Option D is correct because biconditional precisely names the connective that asserts "p if and only if q". Its truth table reflects equality of truth values between the component propositions and embodies logical equivalence.