alternativo

Dutch

Etymology

Either from alternatief +‎ -o or a borrowing, in which case Italian alternativo would be a plausible etymon.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌɑl.tər.naːˈti.voː/
• Hyphenation: al‧ter‧na‧ti‧vo
• Rhymes: -ivoː

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

alternativo m (plural alternativo's, diminutive alternativootje n, feminine alternativa)

1. (chiefly Belgium, derogatory) someone who participates in an alternative subculture (e.g. a hipster, emo or punk) and typically has leftist opinions

   Synonyms: alto, alternatieveling, alternatieve

Esperanto

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-

Proto-Indo-European *h₂élyos

Proto-Italic *aljos

Proto-Indo-European *-teros

Proto-Italic *-teros

Proto-Italic *aliteros

Medieval Latin alter

Proto-Indo-European *-nós

Proto-Italic *-nos

Medieval Latin -nus

Medieval Latin alternus

Proto-Indo-European *-h₂

Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂

Proto-Indo-European *-yéti

Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti

Proto-Indo-European *-h₂tiinflu.

Proto-Italic *-ājō

Proto-Italic *-āō

Medieval Latin -ō

Medieval Latin alternō

Medieval Latin alternātus

Proto-Indo-European *-wós

Proto-Indo-European *-iHwósder.

Medieval Latin -īvus

Medieval Latin alternātīvusbor.

French alternatif

French alternativebor.

Esperanto alternativo

Borrowed from French alternative (noun), from alternatif (adjective).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /alternaˈtivo/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ivo
• Syllabification: al‧ter‧na‧ti‧vo

Noun

alternativo (accusative singular alternativon, plural alternativoj, accusative plural alternativojn)

1. alternative
   • 2012, Plato, translated by Donald Broadribb, La Respubliko (Traduko al Esperanto) [The Republic (Translation into Esperanto)], 2nd corrected edition (paperback), New York: Mondial, →ISBN, page 17:

     "Nu, vi devos aŭ superforti nin aŭ resti ĉi tie," li diris. "Ĉu ne ekzistas alternativo?" mi demandis.

     "Well, you will either have to overcome us or stay here," he said. "Is there not an alternative?" I asked.

     (literally, “"Well, you will have either to overcome us or stay here," he said. "Does not exist an alternative?" I asked.”)

Galician

Adjective

alternativo (feminine alternativa, masculine plural alternativos, feminine plural alternativas)

1. alternative

Italian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /al.ter.naˈti.vo/
• Rhymes: -ivo
• Hyphenation: al‧ter‧na‧tì‧vo

Adjective

alternativo (feminine alternativa, masculine plural alternativi, feminine plural alternative)

1. alternative

Derived terms

• alternativamente
• alternatività

Related terms

• alternativa

Further reading

• alternativo in Collins Italian-English Dictionary
• alternativo in Aldo Gabrielli, Grandi Dizionario Italiano (Hoepli)
• alternativo in garzantilinguistica.it – Garzanti Linguistica, De Agostini Scuola Spa
• alternativo in Dizionario Italiano Olivetti, Olivetti Media Communication
• alternativo in sapere.it – De Agostini Editore
• alternativo in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana

Anagrams

• avolteranti, inoltravate, rintavolate

Latin

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [aɫ.tɛr.naːˈtiː.woː]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [al.ter.naˈtiː.vo]

Adjective

alternātīvō

1. dative/ablative masculine/neuter singular of alternātīvus

Portuguese

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-

Proto-Indo-European *h₂élyos

Proto-Italic *aljos

Proto-Indo-European *-teros

Proto-Italic *-teros

Proto-Italic *aliteros

Latin alter

Proto-Indo-European *-nós

Proto-Italic *-nos

Latin -nus

Latin alternus

Proto-Indo-European *-h₂

Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂

Proto-Indo-European *-yéti

Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti

Proto-Indo-European *-h₂tiinflu.

Proto-Italic *-ājō

Proto-Italic *-āō

Latin -ō

Latin alternō

Latin alternātus

Proto-Indo-European *-wós

Proto-Indo-European *-iHwósder.

Latin -īvus

Latin alternātīvuslbor.

Portuguese alternativo

Learned borrowing from Latin alternātīvus. By surface analysis, alternar +‎ -tivo.

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /aw.teʁ.naˈt͡ʃi.vu/ [aʊ̯.teɦ.naˈt͡ʃi.vu]

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /aw.teʁ.naˈt͡ʃi.vu/ [aʊ̯.teɦ.naˈt͡ʃi.vu]
  • (São Paulo) IPA^(key): /aw.teɾ.naˈt͡ʃi.vu/ [aʊ̯.teɾ.naˈt͡ʃi.vu]
  • (Rio de Janeiro) IPA^(key): /aw.teʁ.naˈt͡ʃi.vu/ [aʊ̯.teʁ.naˈt͡ʃi.vu]
  • (Caipira) IPA^(key): /aw.teɻ.naˈt͡ʃi.vu/ [aʊ̯.teɻ.naˈt͡ʃi.vu]
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /aw.teʁ.naˈt͡ʃi.vo/ [aʊ̯.teɦ.naˈt͡ʃi.vo]

 

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /al.tɨɾ.nɐˈti.vu/ [aɫ.tɨɾ.nɐˈti.vu]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /al.tɨɾ.nɐˈti.vu/ [aɫ.tɨɾ.nɐˈti.vu]
  • (Northern Portugal) IPA^(key): /al.tɨɾ.nɐˈti.bu/ [aɫ.tɨɾ.nɐˈti.βu]

• (Northeast Brazil) IPA^(key): [awtexnaˈtivu]
• Hyphenation: al‧ter‧na‧ti‧vo

Adjective

alternativo (feminine alternativa, masculine plural alternativos, feminine plural alternativas, not comparable)

1. alternative (having more than one choice)

Related terms

• alternativa, alternar

Further reading

• “alternativo”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “alternativo”, in Dicionário inFormal (in Portuguese), 2006–2026
• “alternativo” in Dicionário Aberto based on Novo Diccionário da Língua Portuguesa de Cândido de Figueiredo, 1913
• “alternativo”, in Dicionário infopédia da Lingua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Porto: Porto Editora, 2003–2026
• “alternativo”, in Michaelis Dicionário Brasileiro da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), São Paulo: Editora Melhoramentos, 2015–2026, →ISBN
• “alternativo”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from French alternatif, from Latin alternātīvus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /alteɾnaˈtibo/ [al̪.t̪eɾ.naˈt̪i.β̞o]

• Audio (Venezuela):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ibo
• Syllabification: al‧ter‧na‧ti‧vo

Adjective

alternativo (feminine alternativa, masculine plural alternativos, feminine plural alternativas)

1. alternative

Derived terms

• alternativamente
• medicina alternativa

Related terms

• alternar
• alternativa

Descendants

• → Tagalog: alternatibo

Further reading

• “alternativo”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025