# alternative

Pronunciation: US say "awl-TUR-nuh-tiv" /ɔlˈtɝ.nə.tɪv/; UK say "ol-TUR-nuh-tiv" /ɒlˈtɜː.nə.tɪv/

## Noun

1. One of two or more possibilities that can be chosen instead of another, including the one left when others are ruled out.
   - Simple: Another thing you can choose instead, or the only choice left.
   - _Renting a car seemed a reasonable alternative to buying one._
   - _The board reviewed several alternatives before approving the merger._
4. A broad genre of rock music that grew out of the independent underground of the late 1970s and 1980s, set apart from mainstream pop and rock.
   - Simple: A style of rock music that grew out of small, independent music scenes in the late 1970s and 1980s.
   - _The radio station plays nothing but alternative after midnight._
   - _Back in the nineties, alternative briefly dominated the charts._
6. A situation that forces a mutually exclusive choice between two or more possibilities.
   - Simple: A situation where you must pick just one of two or more options.
   - _Voters were left with a stark alternative: accept the deal or reject it outright._
   - _The negotiators faced a difficult alternative between compromise and collapse._

## Adjective

2. Other than the usual; different from something else.
   - Simple: Different from the usual one, or another option you can use instead.
   - _The committee proposed an alternative plan when the first one failed._
   - _The bridge was closed for repairs, so we followed signs for an alternative route into town._
3. Outside the mainstream; not traditional or conventional, often deliberately underground.
   - Simple: Not following the usual or popular style, outside the mainstream.
   - _The café had an alternative vibe, full of local art and mismatched furniture._
   - _The zine covered alternative fashion that never reached the major retail stores._
5. Offering or concerning a choice between two or more possibilities, as in an alternative question.
   - Simple: Giving a choice between two or more things.
   - _The court read it as an alternative offer: one price if the condition was met, another if not._
   - _The proposal laid out alternative courses, leaving the final pick to members._

## Adjective

7. Alternate or reciprocal; occurring by turns or done in return. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: Taking turns one after the other, or done in return.

## Origin

Latin alternō ("to interchange, alternate") gave Medieval Latin alternātīvus ("alternating"), and from that came Middle French alternatif, the source of the English word.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/alternative (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).