alter

«alter» in Mova's school dictionary: to change it, usually a little — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 4 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

part of speech

verb (alter, alters, altered, altering)

meaning for a pupil

1) To alter something is to change it, usually a little. tree →

2) If something alters, it becomes different. tree →

3) To alter clothes is to make them fit better, for example by shortening them. tree →

sense in the lessons

In everyday life tailors alter trousers; plans are altered when it rains. In science, heating can alter a material (a reversible or irreversible change). In maths, «if you alter one number» the answer may change. Phrases: alter a plan, alter clothes, alter the course of.

examples

• We had to alter our plans because of the rain. tree →
• Grandma altered my school trousers so they fit. tree →
• Heating can alter the shape of chocolate. tree →
• The road was altered to make room for a cycle lane. tree →
• If you alter one number in the sum, the total changes. tree →
• Nothing can alter the fact that we lost. tree →
• The caterpillar's body altered completely inside the cocoon. tree →
• Thus may circumstances alter the course of a man's life! tree →

note

Regular verb: altered, altering. The noun is «alteration». Do not confuse with «altar» (a table in a church) — they sound the same. «Alter» is a little more formal than «change».

In the corpora

• «He was indeed an altered Toad!»
• «He was indeed an altered Toad!» (altered = changed)
• "Altered" (US) means a pet has been neutered or spayed.
• My covenant will I not profane, nor alter that which is gone out of My lips.

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «alter» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.