alter ego
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English[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From Latin alter ego (literally “other self”).[1][2]
Pronunciation[edit]
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈɔːl.təɹ iːɡəʊ/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ˈɔl.tɚ iɡoʊ/
Audio (US) (file)
Noun[edit]
alter ego (plural alter egos)
- Somebody's alternate personality or persona; another self.
- 1897, Mary H. Kingsley, Travels in West Africa, page 538:
- […] a belief in the possibility of a man possessing an alter ego in the form of some animal such as a crocodile or a hippopotamus. It is believed that such a person's life is bound up with that of the animal to such an extent that, whatever affects the one produces a corresponding impression upon the other, and that if one dies the other must speedily do so too.
- 1938, Robert Berkov, “China's Chiang”, in Strong Man of China: The Story of Chiang Kai-shek[2], Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, page 1:
- As one commentator has remarked, all the confusing old three-syllable names that used to index Chinese politics can now be forgotten — the names and their bearers have ceased to be of the slightest importance. In their place stands one man — a small, frail, volatile but tremendously energetic man — who oddly enough has become the alter ego of that powerful, sprawling, sleepy giant that is China.
- 2012 May 1, Ben Child, “Mark Ruffalo gets green light to play Hulk in six-movie deal”, in the Guardian[3]:
- Ruffalo's turn as Bruce Banner and his angry green alter-ego has been widely praised. Avengers Assemble (titled The Avengers outside the UK) is on course to be one of the year's biggest films and has received strong reviews.
- A very close and intimate friend.
- 1974 April 13, “Sex Isn't Everything! (personal advertisement)”, in Gay Community News, page 10:
- GWM, 5'10", 175, 40, non-smoker, MCC-er. Good build. Int. in classical music, books, travel. Seeks alter ego with own peace for honest relationship.
- (law) A corporation used by a person to conduct personal business in an attempt to shield himself or herself from personal liability, and which a court may penetrate by "piercing the corporate veil" to impose liability on the person when they commit fraud or injustice.
Synonyms[edit]
Derived terms[edit]
- alter (“one identity of a person with dissociative identity disorder”, noun)
Related terms[edit]
Translations[edit]
alternate personality or persona
|
very close and intimate friend
|
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ The Routledge Dictionary of Latin Quotations by Jon R. Stone[1]
- ^ “alter ego”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
Finnish[edit]
Etymology[edit]
Noun[edit]
alter ego
- alter ego (somebody's alternate personality or persona)
Declension[edit]
Inflection of alter ego (Kotus type 1/valo, no gradation) | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
nominative | alter ego | alter egot | ||
genitive | alter egon | alter egojen | ||
partitive | alter egoa | alter egoja | ||
illative | alter egoon | alter egoihin | ||
singular | plural | |||
nominative | alter ego | alter egot | ||
accusative | nom. | alter ego | alter egot | |
gen. | alter egon | |||
genitive | alter egon | alter egojen | ||
partitive | alter egoa | alter egoja | ||
inessive | alter egossa | alter egoissa | ||
elative | alter egosta | alter egoista | ||
illative | alter egoon | alter egoihin | ||
adessive | alter egolla | alter egoilla | ||
ablative | alter egolta | alter egoilta | ||
allative | alter egolle | alter egoille | ||
essive | alter egona | alter egoina | ||
translative | alter egoksi | alter egoiksi | ||
abessive | alter egotta | alter egoitta | ||
instructive | — | alter egoin | ||
comitative | See the possessive forms below. |
Synonyms[edit]
Further reading[edit]
- “alter ego”, in Kielitoimiston sanakirja [Dictionary of Contemporary Finnish][4] (online dictionary, continuously updated, in Finnish), Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten tutkimuskeskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2004–, retrieved 2023-07-02
Portuguese[edit]
Pronunciation[edit]
Noun[edit]
alter ego m (plural alter egos)
Related terms[edit]
Spanish[edit]
Alternative forms[edit]
Etymology[edit]
Borrowed from Latin alter ego (“other self”).
Pronunciation[edit]
Noun[edit]
alter ego m (plural alter egos)
Further reading[edit]
- “alter ego”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014
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- Finnish valo-type nominals
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- Portuguese nouns
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