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alternate
[ verb awl-ter-neyt, al-; adjective noun awl-ter-nit, al- ]
verb (used without object)
- to interchange repeatedly and regularly with one another in time or place; rotate (usually followed by with ):
Day alternates with night.
- to change back and forth between conditions, states, actions, etc.:
He alternates between hope and despair.
- to take turns:
My sister and I alternated in doing the dishes.
- Electricity. to reverse direction or sign periodically.
- Linguistics. to occur as a variant in alternation with another form.
verb (used with object)
- to perform or do in succession or one after another:
to alternate comedy acts; to alternate jogging and walking.
- to interchange successively or regularly:
to alternate hot and cold compresses.
adjective
- being in a constant state of succession or rotation; interchanged repeatedly one for another:
Winter and summer are alternate seasons.
- reciprocal; mutual:
alternate acts of kindness.
- every second one of a series:
Read only the alternate lines.
- constituting an alternative:
The alternate route is more scenic.
- Botany.
- placed singly at different heights on the axis, on each side in succession, or at definite angular distances from one another, as leaves.
- opposite to the intervals between other organs:
petals alternate with sepals.
noun
- a person authorized to fill the position, exercise the duties, etc., of another who is temporarily absent; substitute.
- Theater.
- either of two actors who take turns playing the same role.
- an understudy.
alternate
verb
- often foll by with to occur or cause to occur successively or by turns
day and night alternate
- introften foll bybetween to swing repeatedly from one condition, action, etc, to another
he alternates between success and failure
- tr to interchange regularly or in succession
- intr (of an electric current, voltage, etc) to reverse direction or sign at regular intervals, usually sinusoidally, the instantaneous value varying continuously
- introften foll byfor theatre to understudy another actor or actress
adjective
- occurring by turns
alternate feelings of love and hate
- every other or second one of a series
he came to work on alternate days
- being a second or further choice; alternative
alternate director
- botany
- (of leaves, flowers, etc) arranged singly at different heights on either side of the stem
- (of parts of a flower) arranged opposite the spaces between other parts Compare opposite
noun
- a person who substitutes for another in his absence; stand-in
alternate
- Arranged singly at intervals on a stem or twig. Elms, birches, oaks, cherry trees, and hickory trees have alternate leaves.
- Compare opposite
- Arranged regularly between other parts, as stamens between petals on a flower.
Other Word Forms
- t·Բٱ· adverb
- t·Բٱ·Ա noun
- t·ԲiԲ· adverb
- ԴDz·t·ԲiԲ adjective
- ܲȴ-t·ԲiԲ adjective
- quasi-t·ԲiԲ· adverb
- ܲ·t·Բe adjective
- ܲ·t·ԲiԲ adjective
Word History and Origins
Origin of alternate1
Word History and Origins
Origin of alternate1
Example Sentences
Since then, the meeting has alternated between London and Dublin.
Kirkwood, sixth in the IndyCar Series driver standings last year, held the lead until the eighth lap Sunday, when he pitted to dump his softer alternate tires, which provide grip but wear down quickly.
The annual men's and women's rugby matches between Cardiff and Swansea universities alternate between the two cities each year.
Lewis Hamilton, on an alternate tyre strategy, took seventh from eighth place on the grid, getting ahead of Racing Bulls' Isack Hadjar early in the race.
It’s fun to read, for sure, but there’s also a yawning pit of despair sitting beneath the narrator’s alternating tones of glib humor and seething rage.
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