Temporary alimony or alimony pendente lite is alimony given when the parties are separated, but the divorce is not final. ("Pendente lite" is a Latin phrase which means "while the action is pending.") Alimony may be continued under a different label after the divorce is final, but it need not be.

Rehabilitative alimony refers to alimony that is given to a spouse so that the spouse may "rehabilitate" herself or himself in the sense of acquiring greater earning power or training in order to become self-supporting. Rehabilitative alimony also might be given to a parent who is staying home with young children until such time as it is considered appropriate for the parent to work outside the home.

There is no uniform time at which parents are automatically expected to work outside the home, but a common time for the parent to resume work is after the youngest child starts school full-time. (Of course, in many families—intact and divorced—the parents work outside the home when the children are pre-schoolers. And in some families, one parent stays home as long as the children live at home.)

Rehabilitative alimony is usually for a fixed period of time. The court (or the parties by agreement) may include a provision that the alimony is subject to review at the end of that period. If alimony is subject to review, it means the court may look at the facts of a case at a later time to determine whether alimony should be continued, discontinued, or changed in amount.

If the order or agreement regarding alimony does not contain a provision for review, it may or may not be reviewable, depending on the law of the state. If the recipient of alimony wants the alimony to be reviewable (with the possibility of continuation), it is best to include language to that effect. If the person paying alimony (the payor) does not want alimony to be continued beyond a certain time, then he or she should seek to have language to that effect included in the agreement or order. A court is likely to approve cessation of alimony on a certain date if that is what the agreement or order calls for, but the court usually has the power to continue alimony in certain circumstances, such as chronic illness of the recipient.