altered

1 of 2

adjective

al·​tered ˈȯl-tərd How to pronounce altered (audio)
Synonyms of alterednext
1
: made different in some way
… she addressed me again, speaking in very altered tones; so altered, that I hardly recognised them as hers.—Wilkie Collins
… no great change had taken place inside him, but his exterior was visibly altered.—Booth Tarkington
2
: castrated sense 1a
I've noticed that my altered cats and my older cats have more dandruff than the unaltered and younger ones.—Susie Page

altered

2 of 2

past tense and past participle of alter

Examples of altered in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Adjective
Do the Tigers, here in this new, altered state, really have one more run left in them? — Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026 Trump later posted on his social media platform an altered map of the lake and surrounding area. — Isabella Murray, ABC News, 25 Aug. 2026 At several key moments, the Tribune review found, government and law enforcement failed to stop them from operating in the industry — despite discoveries along the way of an altered state credential, and allegations in a barrage of lawsuits. — Gregory Royal Pratt, Chicago Tribune, 15 Aug. 2026 Search engines, screen readers, copy/paste tools, and translation software can all get tripped up by the altered HTML, making the page a little less useful to your intended audience. — Kyle Orland, ArsTechnica, 12 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for altered

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

from past participle of alter

First Known Use

Adjective

1563, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of altered was in 1563

Rhymes for altered

See All Rhymes for altered

Browse Nearby Words

alter Christus
altered
altered chord
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Cite this Entry

“Altered.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/altered. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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