alternate

American  

[awl-ter-neyt, al-, awl-ter-nit, al-] / ˈɔl tərˌneɪt, ˈæl-, ˈɔl tər nɪt, ˈæl- /

verb (used without object)

• alternates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• alternated,
  past participle,  past
• alternating
  present participle

1. to interchange repeatedly and regularly with one another in time or place; rotate (usually followed bywith ).

   Day alternates with night.

2. to change back and forth between conditions, states, actions, etc..

   He alternates between hope and despair.

3. to take turns.

   My sister and I alternated in doing the dishes.

4. Electricity. to reverse direction or sign periodically.

5. Linguistics. to occur as a variant in alternation with another form.

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verb (used with object)

• alternates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• alternated,
  past participle,  past
• alternating
  present participle

1. to perform or do in succession or one after another.

   to alternate comedy acts; to alternate jogging and walking.

2. to interchange successively or regularly.

   to alternate hot and cold compresses.

adjective

1. being in a constant state of succession or rotation; interchanged repeatedly one for another.

   Winter and summer are alternate seasons.

2. reciprocal; mutual.

   alternate acts of kindness.

3. every second one of a series.

   Read only the alternate lines.

4. constituting an alternative.

   The alternate route is more scenic.

5. alternative.

6. Botany.

   1. placed singly at different heights on the axis, on each side in succession, or at definite angular distances from one another, as leaves.

   2. opposite to the intervals between other organs.

      petals alternate with sepals.

noun

• alternates
  plural

1. a person authorized to fill the position, exercise the duties, etc., of another who is temporarily absent; substitute.

2. Theater.

   1. either of two actors who take turns playing the same role.

   2. an understudy.

3. alternative.

alternate British  

verb

1. (often foll by with) to occur or cause to occur successively or by turns

   day and night alternate

2. to swing repeatedly from one condition, action, etc, to another

   he alternates between success and failure

3. (tr) to interchange regularly or in succession

4. (intr) (of an electric current, voltage, etc) to reverse direction or sign at regular intervals, usually sinusoidally, the instantaneous value varying continuously

5. theatre to understudy another actor or actress

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adjective

1. occurring by turns

   alternate feelings of love and hate

2. every other or second one of a series

   he came to work on alternate days

3. being a second or further choice; alternative

   alternate director

4. botany

   1. (of leaves, flowers, etc) arranged singly at different heights on either side of the stem

   2. (of parts of a flower) arranged opposite the spaces between other parts Compare opposite

noun

1. a person who substitutes for another in his absence; stand-in

alternate Scientific  

/ ôl′tər-nĭt /

1. Arranged singly at intervals on a stem or twig. Elms, birches, oaks, cherry trees, and hickory trees have alternate leaves.

2. Compare opposite

3. Arranged regularly between other parts, as stamens between petals on a flower.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• alternateness
  noun
• nonalternating
  adjective
• quasi-alternating
  adjective
• unalternated
  adjective
• unalternating
  adjective
• alternately
  adverb
• alternatingly
  adverb
• quasi-alternatingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• alternates
  plural

Participles

• alternating
  present
• alternated
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• alternate
  simple
• alternates
  simple
• have alternated
  perfect
• has alternated
  perfect
• am alternating
  progressive
• are alternating
  progressive
• is alternating
  progressive
• have been alternating
  perfect progressive
• has been alternating
  perfect progressive

Past

• alternated
  simple
• had alternated
  perfect
• was alternating
  progressive
• were alternating
  progressive
• had been alternating
  perfect progressive

Future

• will alternate
  simple
• will have alternated
  perfect
• will be alternating
  progressive
• will have been alternating
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of alternate

First recorded in 1505–15, alternate is from the Latin word alternātus (past participle of alternāre ). See altern, -ate ¹

Explanation

On a checkerboard, black squares alternate with white ones. As a verb, alternate means to do something in turns. As a noun, an alternate is a replacement. While the noun and verb seem not to mean the same thing, think of it this way: If you are brought on in a game to be someone's alternate, you are there to take their turn. Alternate can also be used as an adjective, meaning different or other. An alternate view of history is one that looks at the past from an uncommon perspective. Pay attention to the pronunciation of alternate: as a verb the end is pronounced "-nāt" and as a noun or adjective "-nət."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

alternate alternates alternated alternating

The hardest hit areas have been divided into zones that will alternate water service on 48-hour cycles, leaving some neighborhoods without water while others remain supplied.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

You have no legal duty to step forward, although you should notify the beneficiaries and any alternate executors named in the will as soon as possible.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 7, 2026

With dinner already half-imagined, I could pass the tomatoes and melons without treating each one as an alternate future I might regret abandoning.

From Salon ● Aug. 4, 2026

Business owner Lorenzo, who entered the villa on day one, said he felt like he "manifested" meeting Julia, 26, in Casa Amor, the alternate villa where relationships are tested by new arrivals.

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026

After studying the three lists given above, can you think of examples of alternate uses for music?

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin

Interval training alternates between more vigorous periods of exercise and lower-intensity periods of active recovery.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 2, 2026

The rest of the album alternates between chaos and control, introspection and criticism, grungy beats and hazy surrealism.

From Salon ● Jun. 5, 2026

Mr. Stark, the author of several books about the American frontier, smoothly alternates between Spanish and Native American perspectives as he brings to life his cast of characters along with their aspirations and conflicts.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026

Her accent alternates mid-sentence from city gal to snidely British, Ida loudly accusing a mob boss of murdering women.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 4, 2026

Mornings he alternates between Madame Manec’s kitchen, the tobacco shop, and the post office, where he waits in interminable queues to use the telephone.

From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr

We alternated between mat and barre work, using light weights and an exercise strap and ball.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

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

For whatever reason he grumbled and spat and alternated between growling orders and rubbing his big, unhealthy belly.

From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles

The FCC also added foreign-made inverters to the list -- devices that, among other functions, convert direct current from batteries or solar panels into standard alternating current, which can be used by the electrical grid.

From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026

Dietitian Kate Hilton previously told BBC News she recommends drinking alcohol in moderation during hot weather and alternating it with non-alcoholic drinks.

From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026

The tower of the former Pfizer headquarters was built in the 1960s, alternating sleek rows of metallic cladding and rectangular windows up a wedding-cake-shaped facade.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026

Their simulations showed that disruptions often travel through alternating direct and indirect pathways, moving across international trade links as well as domestic production chains.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 20, 2026

The twins, bless them, sent boxes of cookies their grandmother had made and letters written in alternating inks—black for Charles, red for Camilla.

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt

Related Words

• alter
• intersperse
• rotate
• vary
• waver