Alternative vs Descendant - What's the difference?
alternative | descendant |
Relating to a choice between two or more possibilities
Not traditional, outside the mainstream, underground (e.g., alternative medicine, alternative lifestyle, (alternative rock)).
Other.
alternate; reciprocal
A situation which allows a mutually exclusive choice between two or more possibilities; a choice between two or more possibilities.
* 1817 , (Walter Scott), Rob Roy , XI:
One of several mutually exclusive things which can be chosen.
The remaining option; something available after other possibilities have been exhausted.
descending from a biological ancestor.
proceeding from a figurative ancestor or source.
(literally) One who is the progeny of a specified person, at any distance of time or through any number of generations.
(figuratively) A thing that derives directly from a given precursor or source.
(biology) A later evolutionary type.
(linguistics) A language that is descended from another.
(linguistics) A word or form in one language that is descended from a counterpart in an ancestor language.
* 1993 , Jens Elmegård Rasmussen, “The Slavic i''-verbs with an excursus on the Indo-European ''?''-verbs”, in Bela Brogyanyi and Reiner Lipp (editors), ''Comparative-Historical Linguistics , John Benjamins Publishing, ISBN 978-90-272-3598-5,
As nouns the difference between alternative and descendant
is that alternative is alternative while descendant is (literally) one who is the progeny of a specified person, at any distance of time or through any number of generations.As an adjective descendant is
descending from a biological ancestor.alternative
English
(wikipedia alternative)Adjective
(-)- an alternative proposition
- (Holland)
Derived terms
* alternative dispute resolution * alternative energy * alternative lifestyle * alternative medicine * alternative press * alternative voteNoun
(en noun)- ‘The cloister or a betrothed husband?’ I echoed—‘Is that the alternative destined for Miss Vernon?’
Synonyms
* See alsoSee also
*References
* * ----descendant
English
Adjective
(-)Usage notes
The adjective may be spelled either with ant'' or ''ent'' as the final syllable (see descendent). The noun may be spelled only with ''ant .Alternative forms
* descendentAntonyms
* ascendant, ascendent, ascendingNoun
(en noun)- ''The patriarch survived many descendants : five children, a dozen grandchildren, even a great grandchild.
- ''This famous medieval manuscript has many descendants .
- ''Dogs evolved as descendants of early wolves.
- English and Scots are the descendants of Old English.
page 479:
- The direct descendant of this form is the Slavic aorist: Sb.-Cr. n?s?'', ''d?nos? .