Full record for alternative world n.

Definition	= alternate world
OED requirements	antedating 1953
Earliest cite	Arthur C. Clarke, 'The Other Tiger'
Comment	Rick Hauptmann submitted a 1993 cite from the second edition of the Clute/Nicholls "Encyclopedia of SF"; the cite does not appear in the first edition. Michael Swanwick submitted a 1986 cite from Brian Aldiss' "Trillion Year Spree"; Cory Panshin checked the original 1973 version, "Billion Year Spree", and determined that the cite does not appear there. Jeff Prucher submitted a 1977 cite from an article by Brian Aldiss in Brian Ash's "A Visual Encyclopedia of Science Fiction". Jeff Prucher submitted a cite from a 1991 reprint of the 1985 "Oxford Companion to English Literature". Jeff Prucher submitted a 2000 cite from Robert Killheffer's review column in F&SF. Jeff Prucher submitted a 2003 cite from the San Fransico Chronicle's Book Review. Fred Galvin submitted a 1956 cite from Alan Cogan's "In the Cards". Fred Galvin submitted a 1953 cite from Arthur C. Clarke's "The Other Tiger".
Last modified	6 July, 2008

Citations for alternative world n.

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1953 A. C. Clarke Other Tiger in Fantastic Universe June–July 117/2	‘Or perhaps,’ said Arnold, ‘I'll get fed up with the whole conversation, pull out a gun and shoot you.’ ‘Quite possibly,’ admitted Webb, ‘except that I'm pretty sure you, on this Earth, haven't got one. Don't forget, though, that in millions of those alternative worlds I'll beat you on the draw.’
1956 A. Cogan 1956 in Galaxy Sci. Fiction June 128/2	Maybe it was some sort of alternative world we saw, showing us what could happen if we didn't work hard at our marriage. It could have been a sort of warning of what could happen to some people. But not us, of course!
1985 Oxford Companion Eng. Lit. (ed. 5) 876/1	Science Fiction elements are present in the ‘alternative world’ of Tolkien, the interplanetary stories of C. S. Lewis, the fantasies of Burgess and the later works of D. Lessing.
1993 B. Stableford Alternate World in J. Clute & P. Nicholls Encycl. Sci. Fiction 23/1	An alternate world—some writers and commentators prefer the designation ‘alternative world’ on grammatical grounds—is an account of Earth as it might have become in consequence of some hypothetical alteration in history.