alternate
[verb]
Synonyms:
- change, act reciprocally, fluctuate, interchange, oscillate, rotate, substitute, take turns
[adjective]
Synonyms:
- every other, alternating, every second, interchanging, rotating

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Antonyms: consecutive
Contrasted words: sequent, successive, follow, succeed
Related Words: alternant, alternating, rotating, complementary, corresponding, reciprocal, equivalent, proxy, replacing, exchangeable, interchangeable, makeshift, provisional, tentative, fluctuate, oscillate, sway, waver, recur, return, revert

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. al‧ter‧nate¹ AC /ɔːlˈtɜːnət, ɔːlˈtɜːnɪt $ ˈɒːltər-, ˈæl-/ adjective [usually before noun]
[Date: 1500-1600; Language: Latin; Origin: past participle of alternare 'to alternate', from alternus 'alternate', from alter; ⇒ alter]

1. if something happens on alternate days, weeks etc, it happens on one day etc and not the next, and continues in this pattern ⇒ every other
alternate Mondays/weekends etc
The service runs on alternate days.

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In everyday English, instead of alternate days/Fridays/weeks etc, people usually use the phrase every other day/Friday/week etc:
■ We meet on alternate Saturdays. ➔ We meet every other Saturday.

2. two alternate things are placed one after the other in a regular pattern:
alternate blue and red stripes
Arrange the leeks and noodles in alternate layers.

3. used to replace another thing of the same type Synonym : alternative:
the appointment of an alternate director

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. al‧ter‧nate² AC /ˈɔːltəneɪt $ ˈɒːltər-, ˈæl-/ verb [intransitive and transitive]
if two things alternate, or if you alternate them, they happen one after the other in a repeated pattern
alternate between
She alternated between outrage and sympathy.
alternate with
Periods of depression alternate with excited behavior.
alternate something and/with something
Twist your body, alternating right and left stretches.
—alternation /ˌɔːltəˈneɪʃən $ ˌɒːltər-, ˌæl-/ noun [uncountable and countable]

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

alternate
adjective
BAD: We decided to make alternate arrangements in case the hotel was fully booked.
GOOD: We decided to make alternative arrangements in case the hotel was fully booked.

Usage Note:
In British English alternate and alternative have different meanings.
alternate = (1) happening in turn, first one then the other: 'alternate periods of sun and rain' (2) every second (day, week, etc): 'Our local football team plays at home on alternate Saturdays.'
alternative = that may be used instead of the usual one or the one you had planned to use: 'In view of the roadworks, motorists are advised to use an alternative route.'
In American English alternate is used with the same meaning as alternative .

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Common Errors ▲