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alter

[awl-ter] / ˈɔl tər /




Usage

What is another way to say alter? To alter is to make some partial change, as in appearance, while still preserving the identity: to alter a dress, as by raising the hem (to change a dress would mean to put on a different one). To change is to make a material difference so that something is distinctly different from what it was: to change one's opinion. 

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.

See Examples For:

But the appeals court found the states had shown they were already facing immediate consequences from the directive, including deadlines requiring them to alter election procedures and coordinate with federal agencies before the November elections.

From Salon Jul. 26, 2026

And obviously, I came off “Bronson” and “Valhalla Rising,” which they’re about the alter ego.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 23, 2026

Oxygen loss can reduce or relocate their prey, damage habitats and alter the food webs they depend on.

From Science Daily Jul. 20, 2026

He also said he saw "no reason" to change Germany's laws on surrogate pregnancy or alter the CDU's longstanding opposition.

From Barron's Jul. 18, 2026

People who can make gold from lead, or anything else for that matter, who can alter the very material of the world—financial markets would be thrown into chaos.

From "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo

The change significantly alters the players’ preparation, starting with meal times, Aguirre told Mexican radio.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 3, 2026

I interviewed Christo in 2011, and he was eloquent about how his and his wife’s work alters perceptions of nature, and about the deliberately transient character of the art itself.

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 20, 2026

Moreover, the repeal of this rule substantially alters settlement dynamics.

From MarketWatch Jun. 17, 2026

As climate change alters wind patterns and ocean behavior, the forces acting on these systems may also affect how energy moves through turbulent flows.

From Science Daily Jun. 3, 2026

Yes, urged foreign minister Shigenori Togo, because America’s atomic bomb “drastically alters the whole military situation.”

From "Bomb" by Steve Sheinkin

However, scientists did not know whether the brain effects caused by maternal inflammation could still be altered in adulthood.

From Science Daily Jul. 25, 2026

These can include repetitive behavior, challenges with social interaction, enlarged brain growth, and altered sensory processing that persists later in life.

From Science Daily Jul. 25, 2026

The comparison isn’t illegitimate, but the scale is altered.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 22, 2026

It was also the period when he altered his mental approach to the game.

From BBC Jul. 15, 2026

He had altered his voice, I noticed, making it weak and quavery while he uttered his singsong plea: “Take pity on an orphan child, take pity...”

From "Nectar in a Sieve" by Kamala Markandaya

The debate is not about whether AI is real or whether it’s reshaping the U.S. economy by fundamentally altering corporate productivity, capital allocation and the labor market.

From MarketWatch Jul. 20, 2026

The human urge to build right to the shoreline — whether it’s the coastal highway or a bluff-top home — also affects erosion by altering water drainage and adding weight to the cliff.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 14, 2026

Rather than modifying the ink with surfactants or chemically altering the particles, they dispersed nanoscale ultra fine bubbles throughout the liquid.

From Science Daily Jul. 11, 2026

Boston: From a Boston laboratory, Alexander Graham Bell’s first successful transmission, in 1876, collapsed the barriers of distance, forever altering human interaction.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 9, 2026

She’d never shadow-traveled before, had no idea if she could; but after working with the Mist, altering the Labyrinth—she had to believe it was possible.

From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan




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