alternate

I

(New American Roget's College Thesaurus)

n. substitute, stand-in, proxy. —v. take turns, change, vacillate. See oscillation, interchange, discontinuance.

II

(Roget's IV) modif.

1. [Alternative]

Syn. alternative, substitute, makeshift, other; see temporary .

2. [Recurrent]

Syn. intermittent, alternating, every other, every second; see intermittent .

See Synonym Study at intermittent . n.

Syn. replacement, equivalent, double; see substitute .

v.

1. [To take or do by turns]

Syn. rotate, substitute, follow in turn, follow successively, happen by turns, follow one another, do by turns, act reciprocally, do one then the other, act alternately, relieve, fill in for, exchange, take turns, reciprocate, interchange, transpose, change off, spell*.

2. [To fluctuate]

Syn. vary, fluctuate, vacillate, oscillate, waver, seesaw, rise and fall, blow hot and cold, teeter, shift, sway, totter, come and go, ebb and flow, shuffle, go to and fro, ride and tie*, back and fill*, teeter-totter*.

III

(Roget's 3 Superthesaurus)

I

n.

backup, second, stand-in, double, substitute, surrogate.

II

v.

take turns, rotate, switch off, change, reciprocate, vacillate.

IV

(Roget's Thesaurus II) I verb To do, use, or occur in successive turns: interchange, rotate. See CHANGE. II noun One that takes the place of another: replacement, stand-in, substitute, surrogate. Informal: fill-in, pinch hitter, sub. See SUBSTITUTE.