Alteration
| n. | 1. | The act of altering or making different. |
| 2. | The state of being altered; a change made in the form or nature of a thing; changed condition. |
| Noun | 1. |  alteration - an event that occurs when something passes from one state or phase to another; "the change was intended to increase sales"; "this storm is certainly a change for the worse"; "the neighborhood had undergone few modifications since his last visit years ago"Synonyms: change, modification |
| 2. | alteration - the act of making something different (as e.g. the size of a garment) Synonyms: modification, adjustment | |
| 3. | alteration - the act of revising or altering (involving reconsideration and modification); "it would require a drastic revision of his opinion" Synonyms: revision |
ALTERATION. An act done upon an instrument in writing by a party entitled
under it, without the consent of the other party, by which its meaning or
language is changed; it imports some fraud or design on the part of him who
made it. This differs from spoliation, which is the mutilation of the
instrument by the act of a stranger.
2. When an alteration has a tendency to mislead, by so changing the
character of the instrument, it renders it void; but if the change has not
such tendency, it will not be considered an alteration. 1 Greenl. Ev. 566.
3. A spoliation, on the contrary, will not affect the legal character
of the instrument, so long as the original writing remains legible; and, if
it be a deed, any trace of the seal remains. 1 Greenl. Ev. Sec. 566. See
Spoliation.