Alternative or alternate may refer to:

Arts, entertainment and media

* Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * ''The Alternative'' (film), a 1978 Australian television film * ''The Alternative'', a radio show hosted by Tony Evans * ''120 Minutes'' (2004 TV program), an alternative rock music video program formerly known as ''The Alternative'' *'' The American Spectator'', an American magazine formerly known as ''The Alternative: An American Spectator'' *

Alternative comedy Alternative comedy is a term coined in the 1980s for a style of comedy that makes a conscious break with the mainstream comedic style of an era. The phrase has had different connotations in different contexts: in the UK, it was used to describe ...

, a range of styles used by comedians and writers in the 1980s * Alternative comics, a genre of comic strips and books * Alternative media, media practices falling outside the mainstreams of corporate communication * Alternative reality, in fiction * Alternative title, the use of a secondary title for a work when it is distributed or sold in other countries

Music

* ''Alternative'' (album), a B-sides album by Pet Shop Boys * ''The Alternative'' (album), an album by IAMX * " Randy Scouse Git" (released as "Alternate Title" in the UK), by the Monkees, 1967 * "Altern-ate", song by H-el-ical//, 2020

Genres

Alternative country Alternative country, or alternative country rock (sometimes alt-country, insurgent country, Americana, or y'allternative), is a loosely defined subgenre of country music and/or country rock that includes acts that differ significantly in style ...

Alternative dance Alternative dance (also known as indie dance or underground dance in the U.S.) is a musical genre that mixes alternative rock with electronic dance music. Although largely confined to the British Isles, it has gained American and worldwide expos ...

Alternative hip hop Alternative hip hop (also known as alternative rap) is a subgenre of hip hop music that encompasses a wide range of styles that are not typically identified as mainstream. AllMusic defines it as comprising " hip hop groups that refuse to confor ...

* Alternative metal *

Alternative R&B Alternative R&B (also referred to as alt-R&B, indie R&B, hipster R&B, dark R&B, emo R&B and left-field R&B) is a term used by music journalists to describe a stylistic alternative to contemporary R&B that began in the mid 2000s and came to pro ...

Alternative reggaeton Alternative reggaeton is a subgenre of reggaeton that emerged from the reggaeton movement as a reaction to its repetitive and monotone dembow rhythm, and the predominant stereotypical gangsta content that became predictable. The result was a comp ...

* Alternative rock, also known as "alternative music" or simply "alternative" * Indie pop, sometimes known as "alternative pop” *

Indie folk Indie folk is a music genre that arose in the 1990s among musicians from indie rock scenes influenced by folk music. Indie folk hybridizes the acoustic guitar melodies of traditional folk music with contemporary instrumentation. The genre has its ...

, sometimes known as "alternative folk"

Culture and society

Alternate (sports) In team sports, substitution (or interchange) is replacing one player with another during a match. Substitute players that are not in the starting lineup (also known as bench players, backups, interchange, or reserves) reside on the bench and ar ...

, a replacement or backup for a regular or starting team player *

Alternative culture Alternative culture is a type of culture that exists outside or on the fringes of mainstream or popular culture, usually under the domain of one or more subcultures. These subcultures may have little or nothing in common besides their relative ...

, a variety of subcultures existing along the fringes of mainstream culture *

Alternative dispute resolution Alternative dispute resolution (ADR), or external dispute resolution (EDR), typically denotes a wide range of dispute resolution processes and techniques that parties can use to settle disputes with the help of a third party. They are used for ...

, processes and techniques outside the traditional mainstream of jurisprudence *

Alternative fashion Alternative fashion or Alt fashion is fashion that stands apart from mainstream commercial fashion. Alternative fashion includes the fashions of specific subcultures such as emo, scene, goth subculture, hip hop, cyberpunk, kawaii, cottagecore, ...

, for example Gothic fashion, Punk fashion, Fetish fashion *

Alternative lifestyle An alternative lifestyle is a lifestyle perceived to be outside the norm for a given culture. The phrase "alternative lifestyle" is often used pejoratively. Description of a related set of activities as alternative is a defining aspect of certain ...

, a lifestyle that is not within the cultural norm *

Alternative medicine Alternative medicine is any practice that aims to achieve the healing effects of medicine despite lacking biological plausibility, testability, repeatability, or evidence from clinical trials. Complementary medicine (CM), complementary and alt ...

, healing practice that does not fall within the realm of conventional medicine

Education

Alternative education Alternative education encompasses many pedagogical approaches differing from mainstream pedagogy. Such alternative learning environments may be found within state, charter, and independent schools as well as home-based learning environments. ...

, non-traditional education * Alternative school, a school geared towards students whose needs cannot be met in a traditional school

Mathematics and science

* Alternative algebra, an abstract algebra with alternative multiplication * Alternativity, a weaker property than associativity * Alternate leaves, a classification in botanical phyllotaxis

Politics

* The Alternative (Palestine), a former electoral alliance of several socialist Palestinian groups * The Alternative (Denmark), a green political party in Denmark * Alternativa (Kosovo political party), a liberal political party in Kosovo * Alternativa (Italian political party), a populist political party in Italy * Alternativa (North Macedonian political party), an Albanian political party in North Macedonia

Other uses

Alternative investment An alternative investment, also known as an alternative asset or alternative investment fund (AIF), is an investment in any asset class excluding stocks, bonds, and cash. The term is a relatively loose one and includes tangible assets such as ...

, investment other than stocks, bond (finance), money funds, and cash