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

Mel Stuart's alternately haunting, awe-inspiring, and flat-out hilarious adaptation of Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory helped to inspire a whole candy company. —Kevin Jacobsen, EW.com, 10 May 2025

Guitarist Johnstone was alternately audible and indistinct. —George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 May 2025

With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture to butter mixture alternately with sour cream mixture, beating until combined. —Alana Al-Hatlani, Southern Living, 8 May 2025

In a wide-ranging interview that spans his childhood dyslexia, career-long antagonism of Donald Trump and navigation of today’s contracting movie business, Lee is alternately funny and introspective, worried and grateful, but always unapologetically himself. —Rebecca Keegan, HollywoodReporter, 6 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1