What does alter mean in English?

You can learn alter Pronunciation, Grammar & Synonyms in this most authoritative English Dictionary.

alter Meaning, Definition, Pronunciation, Grammar & Synonyms❤️

0 to change something, usually slightly, or to cause the characteristics of something to change:
- We've had to alter some of our plans.
- Although the cost of making phone calls is going up, the charge for connecting to the internet will not alter.
- Giving up our car has radically altered our lifestyle.
- I took the coat back to the shop to have it altered.
1 polite word for castrate or spay
2 to change a characteristic, often slightly, or to cause this to happen:
- [ T ] The coat was too long, so I took it back to the store to have it altered.
3 to change the appearance, character, or structure of something, or to be changed in this way:
- Just last week, the company agreed to alter some of its business practices.
- If they want to continue to have enough workers to fill their contracts, the company will have to alter the way it does business.
- Discovering new oil deposits could substantially alter the balance between supply and demand.
- It was back in 2002 that the shape of the business began to alter.

Even a clear finish will alter the colour of wood slightly.
These are radical changes which will alter the complexion of the British contemporary dance scene.
You can alter the whole appearance of a room just by lighting it in a certain way.
Closing the factory would irrevocably alter the character of the local community for the worse.
Drugs can alter your perception of reality.
Analysis of single channel records indicate that the effect is to favor transition to a substate rather than to physically alter the conductance pathway.
Nonetheless, in some cases the phonetic spellings of mispronunciations may have been altered by some familiarity with the correct spelling.
Participants were given two digitally altered photographs and asked to find as many differences as they could.