nick vs alter

nick is a noun but alter is not a noun.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
nick	Yes	No	Yes	No
alter	No	No	Yes	No

As verbs, alter is a hypernym of nick; that is, alter is a word with a broader meaning than nick:

Other hypernyms of nick include change, modify.

nick (noun)	alter (noun)
a small cut
(British slang) a prison
an impression in a surface (as made by a blow)

nick (verb)	alter (verb)
mate successfully; of livestock	remove the ovaries of
divide or reset the tail muscles of	become different in some particular way, without permanently losing one's or its former characteristics or essence
cut a nick into	cause to change; make different; cause a transformation
cut slightly, with a razor	insert words into texts, often falsifying it thereby
	make an alteration to