alternate history
Americannoun
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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.
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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.
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
Polish studio Fool’s Theory, led by veterans of the beloved Witcher series, describes The Thaumaturge as a role-playing game with “morally ambiguous choices,” and its blend of alternate history and metaphysical mystery looks intriguing.
From Seattle Times • Mar. 3, 2024
Is it alternate history but set in the future?
From New York Times • May 6, 2023
In this alternate history set in 1840s Oxford, orphan Robin Swift is taken from his home in China and raised by Professor Lowell, who gives his ward a foundation in various foreign and classical languages.
From Salon • Dec. 15, 2022
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 Doctorow, Cory
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.
