Definition

1. Verb:
   • To change or make different: To modify something, often in a way that is not permanent or fundamental. This change can apply to appearance, form, or character.
   • To adjust or adapt: To make small changes to something, such as clothing, to make it fit or suit a purpose better.
   • To castrate or spay an animal: A specialized, chiefly North American usage meaning to neuter a pet or livestock.

Usage and Examples

• To change or modify something:
  • The company had to alter its plans due to the bad weather.
  • He altered his will to include his grandchildren.
• To adjust clothing:
  • I need to alter this dress because it's too long.
  • The tailor altered the suit to fit him perfectly.
• To neuter an animal:
  • We decided to alter our dog for health reasons.

Advanced Usage

• "to alter course": To change direction, either literally (e.g., a ship) or figuratively (e.g., a plan or career).
  • The ship altered course to avoid the storm.
  • After the feedback, the team altered course on the project.
• "unalterable" (adj): Impossible to change.
  • The laws of physics are considered unalterable.

Variants and Related Words

• Alteration (n): A change or modification.
  • They made several alterations to the building's design.
• Alterable (adj): Capable of being changed.
  • The schedule is alterable if needed.
• Alter ego (n): A second self or a very close friend; a different aspect of one's personality.
  • The superhero's alter ego was a mild-mannered reporter.

Synonyms

• Change: To make or become different.
• Modify: To make partial or minor changes.
• Adjust: To change something slightly to fit or improve.
• Adapt: To make suitable for a new use or purpose.

Antonyms

• Preserve: To maintain something in its original state.
• Keep: To retain possession or condition.
• Fix: To make firm, stable, or stationary.

Phrasal Verbs / Common Collocations

• Alter drastically / significantly / radically: To change in a major way.
  • The landscape was altered drastically by the construction.
• Alter beyond recognition: To change so much that the original form is no longer identifiable.
  • The old town had been altered beyond recognition.

Idioms and Fixed Expressions

• Alter the facts: To change or distort the truth.
  • He was accused of trying to alter the facts to support his story.
• Alter one's state of mind: To change one's mood or mental condition, often through external means.
  • Some people use music to alter their state of mind.

Verb

1. remove the ovaries of
   • Is your cat spayed?
2. insert words into texts, often falsifying it thereby
3. make an alteration to
   • This dress needs to be altered
4. become different in some particular way, without permanently losing one's or its former characteristics or essence
   • her mood changes in accordance with the weather
   • The supermarket's selection of vegetables varies according to the season
5. cause to change; make different; cause a transformation
   • The advent of the automobile may have altered the growth pattern of the city
   • The discussion has changed my thinking about the issue