Otherwise, it may be of tin (2,3)
I believe the answer is:
if not
'otherwise' is the definition.
(synonyms)
'it may be of tin' is the wordplay.
'it may be' indicates anagramming the letters (I've seen this in other clues).
'of'+'tin'='oftin'
'oftin' is an anagram of 'IF NOT'.
(Other definitions for if not that I've seen before include "Unless" , "Failing that" .)
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