Hypertext Webster Gateway: "Alter"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Alter \Al"ter\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Altered}; p. pr. & vb. n.
{Altering}.] [F. alt['e]rer, LL. alterare, fr. L. alter
other, alius other. Cf. {Else}, {Other}.]
1. To make otherwise; to change in some respect, either
partially or wholly; to vary; to modify. ``To alter the
king's course.'' ``To alter the condition of a man.'' ``No
power in Venice can alter a decree.'' --Shak.
It gilds all objects, but it alters none. --Pope.
My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing
that is gone out of my lips. --Ps. lxxxix.
34.
2. To agitate; to affect mentally. [Obs.] --Milton.
3. To geld. [Colloq.]
Syn: {Change}, {Alter}.
Usage: Change is generic and the stronger term. It may
express a loss of identity, or the substitution of one
thing in place of another; alter commonly expresses a
partial change, or a change in form or details without
destroying identity.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Alter \Al"ter\, v. i.
To become, in some respects, different; to vary; to change;
as, the weather alters almost daily; rocks or minerals alter
by exposure. ``The law of the Medes and Persians, which
altereth not.'' --Dan. vi. 8.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
alter
v 1: cause to change; make different; cause a transformation;
"The advent of the automobile may have altered the
growth pattern of the city"; "The discussion has changed
my thinking about the issue" [syn: {change}]
2: make or become different in some particular way, without
permanently losing one's or its former characteristics or
essence; "her mood changes in accordance with the
weather"; "The supermarket's selection of vegetables
varies according to the season" [syn: {change}, {vary}]
3: make an alteration to; "This dress needs to be altered"
4: insert words into texts [syn: {interpolate}, {falsify}]
5: castrate, used with animals; "Is your dog neutered?" [syn: {spay},
{neuter}]
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