That's what the cross-referenced CyberHymnal indexes are for, of tunes by name or meter. As in most USA hymnals with which I am familiar, these indexes let you see the options for matching tunes and words.

Simply soaking up the music (as just the tunes) in the background actually enhances this possiblility... you start to think, "What a pretty tune, what are the words?" Then you might be surprised by the words and think, "Gee, that's not at all what I thought that music would have been about...." So you look up the tune itself and see the other lyric possibilities.

The alternate versions also are generally referenced in each hymn's own page. They are pretty careful to enter things as found in the earliest printed sources available, and there is a provision for spotting errors if an earlier version or deeper level of scholarship should turn up.

It's not so different from our own differing versions here at Mudcat where some would swear they know the straight gospel on what the OFFICIAL or original version of a trad piece may be... the same expertise and variance of experience at CH as we have here. Minus the forum to discuss it... but then for that we have our own Mudcat.

~Susan