What is the purpose of an if statement in programming?

The purpose of an if statement in programming is to execute a block of code conditionally, meaning that the code within the if statement will only run if a specified condition evaluates to true. This allows programmers to control the flow of execution in their programs based on different situations or inputs. For instance, if a certain condition is met (like a variable being greater than a certain value), the program will perform specific actions, enabling dynamic responses to varying conditions during runtime.

Understanding this functionality is crucial for implementing decision-making logic in applications, such as validating user input, controlling application behavior based on user choices, or adjusting program execution based on states or events. This conditional execution is a fundamental concept in programming, as it allows for more complex and responsive program logic.