Alter (&unr_;), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Altered (&unr_;); p. pr. & vb. n. Altering.] [F. altérer, 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.
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It gilds all objects, but it alters none. Pope.
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My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips. Ps. lxxxix. 34.
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2. To agitate; to affect mentally. [Obs.] Milton.
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3. To geld. [Colloq.]
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Syn. -- Change, Alter. 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.
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