Alternative

Pronunciation

• UK IPA: /ɔːlˈtɜːnÉ™tɪv/

Origin

From Middle French alternatif, from Medieval Latin alternativus, from the participle stem of Latin alternāre ("to do by turns"). Compare alternate.

Full definition of alternative

Adjective

1. Relating to a choice between two or more possibilitiesan alternative proposition
2. Not traditional, outside the mainstream, underground (e.g., alternative medicine, alternative lifestyle, alternative rock).
3. Other.
4. alternate; reciprocal

Derived terms

Related terms

• alternate
• alternativeness
• alternativism

Noun

1. A situation which allows a mutually exclusive choice between two or more possibilities; a choice between two or more possibilities. from 17th c.
• 1817, Walter Scott, Rob Roy, XI:‘The cloister or a betrothed husband?’ I echoed—‘Is that the alternative destined for Miss Vernon?’
2. One of several mutually exclusive things which can be chosen. from 17th c.
3. The remaining option; something available after other possibilities have been exhausted. from 18th c.

Synonyms