alternating
adjective
al·ter·nat·ing
ˈȯl-tər-ˌnā-tiŋ 
also ˈal-
: occurring by turns or in succession
a fabric with alternating red and blue stripes
… they lacked experience with volcanoes such as St. Helens, a composite of alternating layers of ash and lava.—
Rowe Findley
Rowe Findley
alternatingly
adverb
Alternatingly, place small mounds of the fennel and cabbage on each plate …
—Owen Dugan
Owen Dugan
Examples of alternating in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Our bodies are designed to perform these activities in a balanced, alternating and reciprocal pattern.
—Dana Santas, CNN, 6 Dec. 2022
Walking is an alternating and reciprocal pattern, which simply means that while one side of the body is doing one thing, the other is doing the opposite to create a complete movement.
—Dana Santas, CNN, 14 Sep. 2022
In the past, shipping electricity many hundreds of miles over conventional alternating-current lines wasn’t economical because of power losses that mounted rapidly the longer the distance.
—Phred Dvorak, WSJ, 7 Mar. 2022
The case and bracelet on both models have are stain-brushed and polished in an alternating fashion right down to the folding clasp.
—Paige Reddinger, Robb Report, 26 Jan. 2022
District 203 Superintendent Dan Bridges said early childhood students in full-day preschool will begin returning to their schools on an alternating-day basis beginning Thursday.
—Rafael Guerrero, chicagotribune.com, 3 Nov. 2020
In Montgomery, churches could have alternating rows of pews roped off and pillows placed in the others, asking only family members to sit together.
—Dennis Pillion | Dpillion@al.com, al, 19 Apr. 2020
To rein in these non-traditional energy sources, researchers typically rely on rectifiers, or devices designed to convert the alternating current of electromagnetic waves—which oscillate in every which direction—into a direct current.
—Courtney Linder, Popular Mechanics, 2 Apr. 2020
The novel presents the alternating viewpoints of Alice and Eleanor in first person, as well as several chapters following John Billington’s point of view (which is disconcertingly rendered in third person).
—Emily Gray Tedrowe, USA TODAY, 16 Mar. 2020
Dana Santas, CNN, 6 Dec. 2022
Walking is an alternating and reciprocal pattern, which simply means that while one side of the body is doing one thing, the other is doing the opposite to create a complete movement.
—Dana Santas, CNN, 14 Sep. 2022
In the past, shipping electricity many hundreds of miles over conventional alternating-current lines wasn’t economical because of power losses that mounted rapidly the longer the distance.
—Phred Dvorak, WSJ, 7 Mar. 2022
The case and bracelet on both models have are stain-brushed and polished in an alternating fashion right down to the folding clasp.
—Paige Reddinger, Robb Report, 26 Jan. 2022
District 203 Superintendent Dan Bridges said early childhood students in full-day preschool will begin returning to their schools on an alternating-day basis beginning Thursday.
—Rafael Guerrero, chicagotribune.com, 3 Nov. 2020
In Montgomery, churches could have alternating rows of pews roped off and pillows placed in the others, asking only family members to sit together.
—Dennis Pillion | Dpillion@al.com, al, 19 Apr. 2020
To rein in these non-traditional energy sources, researchers typically rely on rectifiers, or devices designed to convert the alternating current of electromagnetic waves—which oscillate in every which direction—into a direct current.
—Courtney Linder, Popular Mechanics, 2 Apr. 2020
The novel presents the alternating viewpoints of Alice and Eleanor in first person, as well as several chapters following John Billington’s point of view (which is disconcertingly rendered in third person).
—Emily Gray Tedrowe, USA TODAY, 16 Mar. 2020
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'alternating.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near alternating
Cite this Entry
“Alternating.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/alternating. Accessed 23 Apr. 2024.
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