alternately

adverb

al·​ter·​nate·​ly

US and Canadian

ˈȯl-tər-nət-lē 

also ˈal-;

chiefly British ȯl-ˈtər-

1

: by turns one after the other

His heart rate was 175, his blood pressure alternately spiking and falling.

—Stephen King

As the gravitational waves passed Earth, they would alternately compress and expand the space between two objects.

—Neil deGrasse Tyson et al.

The rest of the day I spent alternately pacing the length of the train … or looking out the windows.

—Rick Riordan

2

: as an alternative

—used to introduce a different possibility from what has been previously suggested or described

From then on, you can take out almost $10,000 a year and annuitize $160,000 after at least ten years. Alternately, you can make no withdrawals and let your guaranteed base grow by 6 percent a year.

—Kerry Pechter

The club was originally known as Fontana Bar (or, alternately, Fontana Lounge and Fontana Room) from Bellagio's opening until it shifted to Hyde in December 2011.

—John Katsilometes

You could be in for a pretty remarkable experience—or, alternately, one of the most miserable and terrifying nights of your life.

—Drew Schwartz

Examples of alternately in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Trump has alternately suggested the reopening of the strait, destruction of Iran’s nuclear resources or regime change as potential goals. —Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 7 Apr. 2026

Transportation staff presented two possible options during a safety committee meeting on Monday that left council members alternately hopeful and skeptical about the investment. —Charlotte Observer, 6 Apr. 2026

There is production design and a few props, but not to any overwhelming purpose, other than perhaps to suggest the house where a lady who loves rescue kitties might be thinking all these alternately independent and co-dependent thoughts about love and trust. —Chris Willman, Variety, 6 Apr. 2026

The alternately gloomy and euphoric pop songs cut and paste snippets of UK pirate radio culture and New York’s Paradise Garage. —Aimee Cliff, Pitchfork, 3 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1