alternation
/ˈɔːltəˌneɪʃən/AWL-tur-nay-shuhn
/ˈɔltɚˌneɪʃən/AWL-tur-nay-shuhn
Meaningthe act of alternating
Common meaning: taking turns, back and forth
- alternthe other of twoLewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), p. 97 · scan
- atverb or adjective ending: to make, having
- ionnoun ending: act or result
Journey through time
- Latinalter‘the other of two’
- Englishalternate‘to take turns’
- Englishformed in English from alternatealternation‘taking turns, back and forth’ · today
Sources & notes
Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.
Pronunciation
- UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
- No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
- US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
- No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.
Origin: Formed in English from alternate + -ion.
Dictionary: Skeat (1898), ALTERNATE, p.19 · scan
Roots
- alter Latin “the other of two”
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