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

Might we, this time, be granted an on-screen peek into their altered circumstances? —Literary Hub, 9 Mar. 2026

Polling suggests the altered behavior won’t change anytime soon. —Alex Harring, CNBC, 7 Mar. 2026

The different vibe, the altered tempo of this year’s spring training is at first deceiving. —Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Mar. 2026

In the first three stories, Lilian, as a bereaved mother, goes through life in an altered state, with encounters that increase her sense of introspection. —Cressida Leyshon, New Yorker, 1 Mar. 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