alterative
Americanadjective
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tending to alter.
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Medicine/Medical Obsolete. gradually restoring healthy bodily functions.
noun
adjective
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likely or able to produce alteration
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obsolete (of a drug) able to restore normal health
noun
Etymology
Origin of alterative
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English word from Medieval Latin word alterātīvus. See alter, -ative
Vocabulary lists containing alterative
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.
Pea protein is increasingly being used in vegan products as an alterative to soya, including in pea "milk" and dairy-free cheese.
From BBC • Oct. 19, 2023
A 55-ton acoustical shell has been designed for an alterative configuration, and that remains to be heard.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 21, 2016
And its long-shot funding agency, the Advanced Research Projects Agency—Energy, has expressed interest in some of the alterative concepts, to the extent of holding a workshop on them last year.
From Nature • Jul. 22, 2014
Do I think it’s possible that over the years Dylan Farrow has conflated false memories into believing them since the alterative, admitting to herself it was a lie, is too devastating to confess?
From Slate • Feb. 10, 2014
It is thus vaguely called an alterative, since the patient recovers under its use.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 6 "Armour Plates" to "Arundel, Earls of" by Various
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
