alteration
/ɔl.tɚˈeɪ.ʃən/noun
alteration is spelled A-L-T-E-R-A-T-I-O-N: 10 letters and 4 syllables. It appears 2.1 times per million words in written English, the 18,811th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, alteration means “The act of altering or making different” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of alteration is alterations.
How many letters and syllables are in alteration?
| Letters | 10: A-L-T-E-R-A-T-I-O-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 2.1 times per million words; the 18,811th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is alteration?
Alteration appears 2.1 times per million words in written English, the 18,811th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce alteration?
- UK /ɒl.tə(ɹ)ˈeɪ.ʃən/
- US /ɔl.tɚˈeɪ.ʃən/
- /ɑl.tɚˈeɪ.ʃən/
Alteration has 4 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-alteration.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with alteration?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as alteration from its last stressed vowel (/eɪʃən/):
- situation
- association
- population
- administration
- operation
- organization
- application
- location
- generation
- foundation
- conversation
- investigation
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of alteration
- alterations plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does alteration mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The act of altering or making different.
- 2
A minor adjustment to clothing, such as hemming or shortening, to make it fit better.
- 3
The state of being altered; a change made in the form or nature of a thing; a changed condition.
The doctors don't see any alteration in the patient's condition.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate alteration?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of alteration: altn..
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Alteration in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense the act of altering or making different:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | altération, altérer |
| German | Änderung, Veränderung |
| Portuguese | alteração |
| Spanish | alteración |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does alteration come from?
From Old French alteracion (French altération), from Medieval Latin alterātiō. Morphologically alter + -ation.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).