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Definitions

alternate

[awl-ter-nayt, al-, awl-ter-nit, al-] / ˈɔl tərˌneɪt, ˈæl-, ˈɔl tər nɪt, ˈæl- /
ADJECTIVE
substitute
Synonyms
Antonyms






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.

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Hyrox sees participants alternate between running a kilometre and doing fitness exercises, including a sled push, burpee jumps, indoor rowing, and lunges while carrying a sandbag.

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026

Rather than spinning their entire bodies together, the snakes alternate between rolling on one side and swinging a curved section of their bodies downward beside their heads.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 24, 2026

The "Modern Warfare" games depict military conflicts in the modern era, inspired by international tensions, while the "Black Ops" games take place in an alternate reality where the Cold War never ended.

From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2026

The move pushed as many as 20,000 vehicles a day onto alternate routes, including Gorski’s street.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

Manipulating an infinite sum—whether it is in the Achilles problem or in finding the area underneath a curve or finding an alternate form for a mathematical function—caused mathematicians to come up with contradictory results.

From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife

Mr. De los Santos’s dense text, which alternates between Spanish and English, is constructed to convey a lot of information, which often leaves Mr. Sosa’s pleasantly tonal score in a subordinate position.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

In the broadcast booth, he sometimes alternates between standing and sitting, or puts his feet up on a table, anything to avoid sitting for hours on end.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026

Instead, many scientists have argued that the brain simply alternates attention between tasks so quickly that it creates the illusion of doing both at once.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 12, 2026

The rest of the album alternates between chaos and control, introspection and criticism, grungy beats and hazy surrealism.

From Salon ● Jun. 5, 2026

“There’s ten of us plus two alternates in case somebody gets sick at the last minute.”

From "The Best School Year Ever" by Barbara Robinson

These changes provided a way to define the system's progression through time, even when the bright region alternated between expansion and contraction.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 30, 2026

We alternated between mat and barre work, using light weights and an exercise strap and ball.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

Erika alternated between sobbing so much she couldn’t speak and sharing beloved memories about Charlie.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026

In public, he has alternated military threats with the offer of fresh negotiations.

From BBC ● Jan. 31, 2026

Thereafter she alternated between the former masters and the former slaves.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin

A year later, the two knights took their talents to Broadway, alternating performances of Waiting for Godot with Harold Pinter's No Man's Land.

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026

Roberts also said alternating between right- and left-handers was not a variable.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2026

Safety had become a concern, and Edison argued that high-tension currents, particularly alternating current, posed an unacceptable danger.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026

Professor Alexey Kornyshev from Imperial College London and his collaborators originally suggested that salt ions surrounding DNA could produce alternating patterns of electrical charge.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026

He crept toward the bathroom, alternating between watching the door and watching Hila.

From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny


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