alt-rock

British

/ ɔːlt /

noun

a genre of rock music regarded by its practitioners and fans as being outside the mainstream

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of alt-rock

C20: from _alt ( _ernative ) + _rock

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.

See Examples For:

alt-rock

Almost exactly three years ago, this Los Angeles-based alt-rock trio ventured up to Napa’s annual BottleRock festival to play its first public gig in more than two decades.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 1, 2026

The author, who has published two books on the Rolling Stones and a comprehensive biography of Leon Russell, is also a musician, fronting the alt-rock trio Buffalo Tom.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2025

Surrender has been a big theme lately in the life of the longtime vocalist and keyboardist of legendary Mexican alt-rock group Café Tacvba.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2025

Low-key kings of ’90s alt-rock, the Afghan Whigs have been on a tear since reuniting in 2011.

From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2017

It definitely means that the songs have aged a lot better than a lot of the alt-rock from that period.

From Salon ● May 24, 2014

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023