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Definitions

alternate

[awl-ter-neyt, al-, awl-ter-nit, al-] / ˈɔl tərˌneɪt, ˈæl-, ˈɔl tər nɪt, ˈæl- /
ADJECTIVE
substitute
Synonyms
Antonyms






Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

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"We've been looking into solar panels but there's very little support out there for people who might want to look at alternate ways for running their household."

From BBC Jul. 18, 2026

In high school, he developed a love for mathematics: “If the teacher said do every alternate problem, I’d do every problem, just simply for the fun of doing it.”

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 17, 2026

It is 1958, nine years since Dennis first entered the Great When, an alternate metropolis where the city’s historical eras flow past one another in “an exotic carnival of moments.”

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 9, 2026

In contrast, the researchers’ alternate momentum strategy lost an average of only 2.4% during those same months.

From MarketWatch Jul. 9, 2026

As long as we’re still making donuts in the alternate universe, I can deal.

From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan

The collaboration alternates between observing runs that collect scientific data and periods dedicated to commissioning and upgrading the detectors.

From Science Daily Jul. 2, 2026

It alternates between "found footage" segments filmed in first person that resemble his web show, and more classic filmic shots.

From Barron's May 28, 2026

Her hysterical grin sets your teeth on edge; she alternates between swiftness and stillness in her uncanny movements.

From Los Angeles Times May 15, 2026

The novel alternates between the perspectives of Kate and the TV show’s writer, Phoebe.

From The Wall Street Journal May 8, 2026

Where possible, the tournament director alternates the colors, so that a player will play with the white pieces in one game and with the black in the next.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

The economy has alternated between adding workers and shedding them for 11 months in a row.

From MarketWatch Apr. 3, 2026

They passed air through larynges removed from deceased horses and then alternated the airflow between normal air and helium.

From Science Daily Feb. 25, 2026

Schlossberg was treated at Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital in New York, where her cancer alternated between remission and relapse after several bone-marrow transplants and clinical trials, she said.

From The Wall Street Journal Dec. 30, 2025

Both women, who had alternated from government to opposition for the best part of two decades, were suddenly mired in court cases.

From BBC Dec. 29, 2025

After the baby was born, Henry joined a law firm in Boston, and Elizabeth alternated between living there with her husband and in New York with her parents.

From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling

Bipolar disorder is a lifelong mental health condition characterised by alternating periods of intense emotional highs and deep emotional lows.

From BBC Jun. 18, 2026

With the exception of Brivik’s appearance, Bird took the stage solo, alternating between performing unreleased songs from an upcoming album and much-loved stalwarts from his 2005 breakout, “The Mysterious Production of Eggs.”

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 16, 2026

In its first 250 years, the U.S. has seen periods of shared prosperity alternating with eras like the Gilded Age, in which income inequality spiked.

From The Wall Street Journal Jun. 4, 2026

The Venice Biennale is an international cultural organisation started in 1895 that presents major cultural festivals and runs its flagship art exhibition and architecture exhibition on alternating years.

From Barron's Apr. 30, 2026

Danny and I took turns explaining each alternating passage.

From "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok




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