alternating case

A form of alternating caps — A form of capitalization where capital letters are placed throughout the word(s), formerly used in the script kiddie subculture and now to convey mockery through text messages or in online discussions.

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Meanings

nounalternating case (uncountable)
  1. alternativeuncountableAlternative form of alternating caps.

    The prose passage was on the left page of a booklet, in upper case, lower case, or alternating case.

    1974, Max Coltheart, Roger Freeman, Case alternation impairs word identification
    1 more example

    College students read a passage presented in AlTeRnAtInG cAsE on a CRT while their eye movements were monitored.

    1979, George W. McConkie, David Zola, Is visual information integrated across successive fixations in reading? (PDF)

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
alternating capsstudly caps

Origin

From alternating + letter case.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

alternating case. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/alternating%20case

MLA

“alternating case.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/alternating%20case. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “alternating case,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/alternating%20case.

Source: alternating case on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.