alternative

CEFRB1

/ɒlˈtɜː.nə.tɪv/

noun · adjective

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    A choice or possibility that can replace another.

  2. 02

    adjective

    Different from the usual choice or method.

Examples

  • Is there no alternative to what you propose?

  • The road was closed so we had to find an alternative route.

At a glance

Sits at B1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
5
Synonyms
1

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meaning

  1. Other; different from something else.

adjective

Extra meanings

  1. Relating to a choice between two or more possibilities.

  2. Presenting two or more alternatives.

More examples

In context

  • We are faced with the alternative of resistance or slavery.

  • There are two alternative theories as to why this phenomenon occurs.

  • alternative conjunctions like or

Synonyms

Antonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

With the highway closed, we had no blank but to take the long way.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

noun

From Middle French alternatif, from Medieval Latin alternātīvus (“alternating”), from the participle stem of Latin alternō (“interchange, alternate”). By surface analysis, alternate + -ive. Compare alternate.