to make different in some particular, as size, style, course, or the like; modify.
to alter a coat; to alter a will; to alter course.
to castrate or spay.
What is another way to say alter?
To alter something is to make it different in some particular way, such as in size, style, or course. How does alter compare to change? Find out on Thesaurus.com.
See adjust,
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Old French alterer, from Late Latin alterāre “to change, worsen,” derivative of Latin alter “other”
After eating too many gingerbread cookies, she no longer fit into her uniform, so she had a seamstress alter it. It looked pretty much the same. The verb alter can also mean to neuter or spay. Think of a cat that has just been spayed: the cat you pick up from the vet is the same cat that you dropped off there, only perhaps a little groggy and unable to reproduce. While the cat has been altered, it's not a different cat.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Bank fees such as monthly maintenance or overdraft charges, or even holds on the account could temporarily alter the available balance.
From MarketWatch • May 19, 2026
“There is the potential for Iran to prolong disruption for revenue and leverage, and we do not anticipate the Trump-Xi summit to alter this trajectory,” says the firm.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 13, 2026
He paved the way for a second and third generation of L.A. theatrical mavericks, notably Peter Sellars and Yuval Sharon, who newly and profoundly alter perception.
From Los Angeles Times • May 11, 2026
Scientists say the slowdown stretches across a large section of the Atlantic Ocean and could eventually alter weather patterns around the world.
From Science Daily • May 10, 2026
If I stopped someone to ask them a question, and that thirty-second delay caused them to accidentally get taken out by a runaway horse or something, I could completely alter history.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
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.
