alter ego

== English == === Etymology === From Latin alter ego (literally “other me”). === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈɔːl.təɹ iːɡəʊ/ (General American) IPA(key): /ˈɔl.tɚ iɡoʊ/ (cot–caught merger) IPA(key): /ˈɑl.tɚ iɡoʊ/ === Noun === alter ego (plural alter egos) An individual's alternate personality or persona; another self. A very close and intimate friend. (law) A corporation used by a person to conduct personal business in an attempt to shield himself or herself from personal liability, and which a court may penetrate by "piercing the corporate veil" to impose liability on the person when they commit fraud or injustice. ==== Synonyms ==== alter idem ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Related terms ==== alteregoism alter-egotism ==== Translations ==== ==== See also ==== double life === References === == Danish == === Etymology === Learned borrowing from Latin alter ego. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): [ˈalˀdʌ ˈeːɡo] === Noun === alter ego n (singular definite alter egoet, plural indefinite alter egoer) alter ego Synonyms: andet jeg, stedfortræder ==== Declension ==== === Further reading === “alter ego” in Den Danske Ordbog == Finnish == === Etymology === From Latin alter ego. === Noun === alter ego alter ego (somebody's alternate personality or persona) ==== Declension ==== ==== Synonyms ==== toinen minä === Further reading === “alter ego”, in Kielitoimiston sanakirja [Dictionary of Contemporary Finnish]‎[4] (in Finnish) (online dictionary, continuously updated), Kotimaisten kielten keskuksen verkkojulkaisuja 35, Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten tutkimuskeskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2004–, retrieved 2 July 2023 == Polish == === Etymology === Learned borrowing from Latin alter egō̆. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ˈal.tɛr ˈɛ.ɡɔ/ Syllabification: al‧ter e‧go === Noun === alter ego n (indeclinable) (psychology, psychiatry) alter ego (individual's alternate personality or persona; another self) Synonym: drugie ja === Further reading === alter ego in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN alter ego in Polish dictionaries at PWN alter ego in PWN's encyclopedia == Portuguese == === Pronunciation === === Noun === alter ego m (plural alter egos) alter ego (alternate personality or persona) Synonym: outro eu ==== Related terms ==== outro === Further reading === “alter ego”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026 “alter ego”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026 == Spanish == === Alternative forms === álter ego (superseded) alterego === Etymology === Unadapted borrowing from Latin alter ego (“other self”). === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ˌalteɾ ˈeɡo/ [ˌal̪.t̪eɾ ˈe.ɣ̞o] Syllabification: al‧ter e‧go IPA(key): /ˌalteˈɾeɡo/ [ˌal̪.t̪eˈɾe.ɣ̞o] Rhymes: -eɡo === Noun === alter ego m (plural alter egos) alter ego (alternate personality or persona) Synonym: otro yo ==== Usage notes ==== According to Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) prescriptions, unadapted foreign words should be written in italics in a text printed in roman type, and vice versa, and in quotation marks in a manuscript text or when italics are not available. In practice, this RAE prescription is not always followed. === Further reading === “alter ego”, 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