# alter vs altered

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### alter
*verb · IPA /ˈɒl.tə/ · frequency rank #6,540*
To change the form or structure of.

### altered
*verb · IPA /ˈɔːl.təd/ · frequency rank #6,861*
simple past and past participle of alter

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/alter-vs-altered