alternative

UK /ɒlˈtɜː.nə.tɪv/ US /ɔlˈtɝ.nə.tɪv/

adj 5noun 5

Collocations

(noun.)

ADJ

attractive, constructive, effective, good, radical, useful

acceptable, available, credible, possible, practical, real, realistic, reasonable, satisfactory, serious, suitable, viable

Remote work has become a realistic alternative for many office employees during recent years.

clear, obvious

cheap, healthy, interesting, safe

Cycling is a cheap alternative to driving a car every day.

VERB + ALTERNATIVE

have

If you don't like that job offer, you still have other alternatives to consider.

offer, provide

The new bus route provides a good alternative for people who don't drive cars.

seek

After the restaurant closed, the family had to seek alternatives for their weekly dinner meetings.

find

When the restaurant closed, we had to find an alternative for our anniversary dinner.

PREP

~ for

When public transport breaks down, carpooling becomes a practical alternative for commuters.

~ to

Some people choose cycling as an alternative to driving their car every day.

PHRASES

have little/no alternative (but to)

The company had little alternative but to close the factory due to rising costs.

leave sb with no alternative (but to)

The company's decision left workers with no alternative but to accept the new contract terms.

Definitions

adj

Relating to a choice between two or more possibilities.

an alternative proposition

Reason would seem to dictate that it was an alternative offer,—either to receive $15,000 if the grantor perform the condition or $12,000 if he did not perform the condition.

Relating to a choice between two or more possibilities.

alternative conjunctions like or

Other; different from something else.

Not traditional, outside the mainstream, underground.

alternative medicine; alternative lifestyle; alternative rock

Alternate, reciprocal.

He [the Sun] it is that giveth light to all things, and riddeth them from darkneſſe : hee hideth the other ſtarres, and ſheweth them againe : he ordereth the ſeaſons in their alternative courſe : he tempereth the yeere, ariſing ever freſh and new againe, for the benefite and good of the world.

noun

A situation which allows a mutually exclusive choice between two or more possibilities; a choice between two or more possibilities.

“The cloister or a betrothed husband?” I echoed—“Is that the alternative destined for Miss Vernon?”

One of several mutually exclusive things which can be chosen.

Between these alternatives there is no middle ground. The Constitution is either a superior, paramount law, unchangeable by ordinary means, or it is on a level with ordinary legislative acts, and, like other acts, is alterable when the legislature shall please to alter it.

The remaining option; something available after other possibilities have been exhausted.

alternative rock

A non-offensive word or phrase that serves as a replacement for a word deemed offensive or unacceptable, though not as a euphemism.

Disability activists discourage the use of the words "crazy" and "insane" due to their negative connections to mental health, suggesting alternatives such as "wild", "silly", or "out of this world", which do not relate to mental health.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

noun — one of a number of things from which only one can be chosen

adjective — serving or used in place of another

Antonyms

Idioms & Phrases

Example Bank

an alternative proposition

Wiktionary

Reason would seem to dictate that it was an alternative offer,—either to receive $15,000 if the grantor perform the condition or $12,000 if he did not perform the condition.

Wiktionary

Who is right, Augusto or Unamuno? In general critics have seen this confrontation as offering an alternative choice: either we are free or we are predetermined.

Wiktionary

“The cloister or a betrothed husband?” I echoed—“Is that the alternative destined for Miss Vernon?”

Wiktionary

Usage Notes

i Register

In some senses, alternative is marked as obsolete. Watch for register when choosing this word.

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