alternate history
Americannoun
-
a genre of fiction comprising narratives in which a historical event or events take a different path than that which occurred in real life.
Much alternate history has been written about World War II.
-
a work of fiction in which a historical event or events take a different path than that which occurred in real life.
The first of her alternate histories, the one in which Aaron Burr wins the 1800 presidential election, is my favorite.
Etymology
Origin of alternate history
First recorded in 1975–80
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.
The Hindenburg disaster, wonder drugs, Marian Anderson’s voice, a rock ’n’ roll alternate history and more.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026
In this alternate history, the 2024 presidential election ended differently.
From Salon ● Jul. 4, 2026
In the 2020 miniseries “Hollywood,” Ryan Murphy’s alternate history of the 1930s picture business, the studio head he plays is not the desk-banger of cliche, but he is a man with an appetite.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 15, 2025
It suggests an alternate history, a route not taken that could have led to a million different worlds better or worse than this one, in a concrete physical form.
From Slate ● Dec. 18, 2024
The little enclaves, each one is like an alternate history of humanity—what if we’d taken the Free Energy, but not deadheading?
From Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom by Cory Doctorow
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
