altered

adjective

al·​tered ˈȯl-tərd 

1

: made different in some way

… she addressed me again, speaking in very altered tones; so altered, that I hardly recognised them as hers.

—Wilkie Collins

… no great change had taken place inside him, but his exterior was visibly altered.

—Booth Tarkington

2

: castrated sense 1a

I've noticed that my altered cats and my older cats have more dandruff than the unaltered and younger ones.

—Susie Page

Examples of altered in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s account posted the original image from Levy Armstrong’s arrest before the official White House account posted an altered image that showed her crying. —Kaitlyn Huamani, Los Angeles Times, 27 Jan. 2026

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s account posted the original image from Levy Armstrong’s arrest before the official White House account posted an altered image that showed her crying. —Kaitlyn Huamani, Fortune, 27 Jan. 2026

The decision to use an altered trajectory was made after extensive testing, NASA said in its Friday statement. —Jackie Wattles, CNN Money, 23 Jan. 2026

Two Norwegian ski jumpers are now suspended and under formal suspicion in a cheating scandal, the International Ski and Snowboard Federation said in widening its investigation of altered ski suits. —Brian Melley, Chicago Tribune, 23 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

from past participle of alter

First Known Use

1563, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for altered

• unaltered
• faltered