alter
verb (used with object)
to make different in some particular, as size, style, course, or the like; modify.
altered
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past participleof alter.past participle
A verb form used in perfect and passive verb constructions and that can also function as a modifier.
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past tense formof alter.past tense
Used to describe completed actions or previous habitual actions.
alterverb (used with object)to make different in some particular, as size, style, course, or the like; modify.
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.
Understand the world with the help of the Muppets: In 2012, Dahlia Lithwick published a piece of cultural analysis that permanently altered how readers viewed their marriages, their workplaces, and the U.S.
From Slate ● Oct. 16, 2026
"Rather, cellular recycling rates are altered differently with age in each of the cell types, and differently by sex in each of the cell types."
From Science Daily ● Oct. 13, 2026
The circumstances surrounding the release of “Toxicity” became even more surreal one week later, when the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks changed the country and altered the way some listeners interpreted the album.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026
“You’re hitting the ground with the same magnitude of force,” says Dr. Daniel Lieberman, a Harvard evolutionary biologist whose research focuses on how modern footwear has altered human biomechanics.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026
Figure 5.31: There is some variation in the chord symbols for altered chords.
From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones
