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

Middle of Nowhere’s Kacey is witty, a bit sarcastic, alternately ecstatic and frustrated but always ready to entertain. —Molly Mary O’Brien, Pitchfork, 1 May 2026

Participants alternately clenched their toes (rock), spread them apart (paper) and crossed the big toe over the others (scissors). —Lindsey Leake, NBC news, 29 Apr. 2026

And work, as this alternately breezy and quite pessimistic crowdpleaser is quick to remind us, isn’t to be taken for granted. —Guy Lodge, Variety, 29 Apr. 2026

An especially visually striking debut, Mosquitoes exists in a saturated hyperreality that is consummately engrossing, and announces the Bertani sisters as formidable portraitists of girlhood cast against the backdrop of an alternately beautiful and oppressive world. —Zac Ntim, Deadline, 29 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1