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alternately

UK[ɔːlˈtɜɹnətlɪ]US/ˈɔl.tɚ.nət.li/
adverbC1Rare in speech; mostly a word you read · #14,082 of 15,258mostly written

Alternately means first one and then the other, over and over. Alternately hot and cold, alternately amused and annoyed, work alternately.

It is worth keeping apart from alternatively, which means as another option — alternately means in turn and the two are constantly swapped. The pattern must be regular for the word to fit, so it names a rhythm rather than a mixture.

Definitions of alternately

  1. 1adverbalternatelyFirst one and then the other, over and over.C1

    “The weather was alternately sunny and rainy all week.”

alternately is an order.

Where it comes from

  1. Proto-Indo-European

    *h₂el- (other)

  2. Latin

    alternātus

  3. English

    alternate

  4. English, today

    alternately

Built from

  • alternus · Latin — one after another, by turns
  • alter · Latin — other

From alternate + -ly. alternate Latin alternātus, the perfect passive participle of Latin alternō (“to take turns”) (see -ate), from alternus (“one after another, by turns”), from alter (“other”) + -nus. a doublet of altern; see also alter.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practised in Time & Calendar

Practise this word

alternately in the wild

  • Kunado-no-Kami, alternately Kunato-no-Kami, Funado-no-Kami, Funato-no-Kami, or Chimata-no-Kami, are Japanese local gods connected chiefly with protection against disaster and malicious spirits.

    Kunado-no-Kami

  • Bangi, alternately Bangi Lama, is a small town situated south of Hulu Langat District, Selangor, Malaysia.

    Bangi, Selangor

  • The riggers are staggered alternately along the boat so that the forces apply asymmetrically to each side of the boat.

    Eight (rowing)

  • Tagarahu (alternately: Orarahu) is a small island in the Baltic Sea belonging to the country of Estonia.

    Tagarahu

  • Sometimes they only have one outrigger, which is alternately set in windward and leeward.

    Jellore

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

Related words

the alter family

alteralternate

alternately — used about once every 41,009 pages · #14,082 · point at the bar for the others

  • alternative