This keyword is used inside a switch block. We compare the expression following the switch keyword, and try to match it to one of the "case" values. If none of them match, we will select the "otherwise" block, if it exists. There should be at least one "case" within a switch block, and there can be many of them. The "otherwise" part may not be specified. If so, there is only one "otherwise" per switch command.
a = 2;
switch (a)
case 1
disp('one');
case 2
disp('two');
otherwise
disp('not one or two');
end
two