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alternant
alternate
alternate angle
alternate payee
alternately
alternating current
alternation
alternation of generations
alternative
alternative assessment
alternative comedy
alternative curriculum
alternative dispute resolution
alternative energy
alternative fibers
alternative investment
Alternative Investment Market
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alternative

al·ter·na·tive [ awl túrnətiv ]


noun  (plural al·ter·na·tives)
Definition:
 
1. other possibility: something different from, and able to serve as a substitute for, something else
You could take the bus as an alternative to driving.

2. possibility of choosing: the possibility of choosing between two different things or courses of action
We gave you the alternative; you decided to stay.

3. option: either one of two, or one of several, things or courses of action to choose between
I can't decide which of the two alternatives is worse.



adjective 
Definition:
 
1. Canada 
Same as  alternateadj (sense 3)


2. mutually exclusive: of which only one can be true, or only one can be used or chosen, or take place at any one time
There are two alternative theories as to why this phenomenon occurs.

3. unconventionally nontraditional: outside the establishment or mainstream, and often presented as being less institutionalized or conventional, or more natural or economical with resources
alternative methods of painting

4. logic 
Same as  disjunctiveadj (sense 3)



Word Usage

See alternate.

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