alternate

Meaning

1. Happening by turns; one following the other in succession of time or place; first one and then the other (repeatedly).
2. Alternating; (of e.g. a pair of tinctures which a charge is coloured) succeeding in turns, or (relative to the field) counterchanged.
3. Designating the members in a series, which regularly intervene between the members of another series, as the odd or even numbers of the numerals; every other; every second.
4. Other; alternative.
5. Distributed singly at different heights of the stem, and at equal intervals as respects angular divergence
6. That which alternates with something else; vicissitude.
7. A substitute; an alternative; one designated to take the place of another, if necessary, in performing some duty.
8. A proportion derived from another proportion by interchanging the means.
9. A replacement of equal or greater value or function.
10. To perform by turns, or in succession; to cause to succeed by turns; to interchange regularly.
11. To happen, succeed, or act by turns; to follow reciprocally in place or time; followed by with.
12. To vary by turns.
13. To perform an alternation (removal of alternate vertices) on (a polytope or tessellation); to remove vertices (from a face or edge) as part of an alternation.

Etymology / origin

Borrowed from Latin alternātus, the perfect passive participle of Latin alternō (“to take turns”) (see -ate (1,2 and 3)), from alternus (“one after another, by turns”), from alter (“other”) + -nus. Doublet of altern; see also alter.

Related words

Descendant words

• alternoida(Finnish) (cog)

Sources

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