all

[ awl ]

/ ɔl /

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adjective

the whole of (used in referring to quantity, extent, or duration): all the cake;all the way;all year.

the whole number of (used in referring to individuals or particulars, taken collectively): all students.

the greatest possible (used in referring to quality or degree): with all due respect;with all speed.

every different; many different: I've met all manner of people on my travels.This essay has all sorts of grammatical errors.

any; any whatever: beyond all doubt.

nothing but; alone: The coat is all wool.

dominated by or as if by the conspicuous possession or use of a particular feature: The colt was all legs.They were all ears, listening attentively to everything she said.

Chiefly Pennsylvania German. all gone; consumed; eaten up: The pie is all.

pronoun

the whole quantity or amount: He ate all of the peanuts. All are gone.

the whole number; every one: all of us.

everything: Is that all you want to say?All is lost.

noun

one's whole interest, energy, or property: to give one's all;to lose one's all.

Often All . the entire universe.

adverb

wholly; entirely; completely: all alone.

only; exclusively: He spent his income all on pleasure.

each; apiece: The score was one all.

Archaic. even; just.

OTHER WORDS FOR all

2 every one of, each of.

14 totally, utterly, fully.

28b in every place, throughout, far and wide, everyplace.

See synonyms for all on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms about all

above all. See entry at above all.

after all, in spite of the circumstances; notwithstanding: He came in time after all.

all at once. once (def. 9).

all bets are off. See entry at all bets are off.

all but, almost; very nearly: These batteries are all but dead.

all in, Northern and Western U.S. very tired; exhausted: We were all in at the end of the day.

all in all,

everything considered; in general: All in all, her health is greatly improved.
altogether: There were twelve absentees all in all.
everything; everything regarded as important: Painting became his all in all.

all in hand, Printing, Journalism. (of the copy for typesetting a particular article, book, issue, etc.) in the possession of the compositor.

all in the wind, Nautical. too close to the wind.

all out, with all available means or effort: We went all out to win the war.

all over,

finished; done; ended.
everywhere; in every part.
in every respect or typically.

all standing, Nautical.

in such a way and so suddenly that sails or engines are still set to propel a vessel forward: The ship ran aground all standing.
fully clothed: The crew turned in all standing.
fully equipped, as a vessel.

all that,

remarkably; entirely; decidedly (used in negative constructions): It's not all that different from your other house.
Slang. exceptionally good; the finest; the best: His new shoes are all that.

all the better, more advantageous; so much the better: If the sun shines it will be all the better for our trip.

all there, Informal. mentally competent; sane: Some of his far-fetched ideas made us suspect that he wasn't all there.

all the same. same (def. 9).

all told. told (def. 2).

all up,

Printing, Journalism. (of copy) completely set in type.
Informal. with no vestige of hope remaining: It's all up with George—they've caught him.

and all, together with every other associated or connected attribute, object, or circumstance: What with the snow and all, we may be a little late.

at all,

in the slightest degree: I wasn't surprised at all.
for any reason: Why bother at all?
in any way: Sorry, I meant no offense at all.

be all, Informal. to say, declare, think, or feel (usually used to introduce reported speech or thought): I try to talk to her and she's all, “Get away from me!”

for all (that), in spite of; notwithstanding: For all that, it was a good year.

in all, all included; all together: a hundred guests in all.

once and for all, for the last time; finally: The case was settled once and for all when the appeal was denied.

Origin of all

First recorded before 900; Middle English al, Old English eal(l); cognate with Gothic alls, Old Norse allr, Old Frisian, Dutch, Middle Low German al, Old Saxon, Old High German al(l) (German all ); perhaps from unattested ol-no-, equivalent to Welsh oll and akin to Old Irish uile, from unattested ol-io-; cf. almighty

usage note for all

Expressions like all the farther and all the higher occur chiefly in informal speech: This is all the farther the bus goes. That's all the higher she can jump. Elsewhere as far as and as high as are generally used: This is as far as the bus goes. That's as high as she can jump.
Although some object to the inclusion of of in such phrases as all of the students and all of the contracts and prefer to omit it, the construction is entirely standard.
See also already, alright, altogether.

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH all

all , awl

Words nearby all

alkyl group, alkyl halide, alkylic, alkyne, alkyne series, all, alla breve, Allah, Allahabad, Allahu Akbar, all along

Other definitions for all (2 of 2)

all-

variant of allo- before a vowel: allonym.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use all in a sentence

But along with the cartoon funk is an all-too-real story of police brutality embodied by a horde of evil Pigs.
‘Black Dynamite’ Presents Police Brutality: The Musical|Stereo Williams|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The benefits of incumbency are quite potent, especially in the all-important area of raising campaign funds.
The Unbearable Whiteness of Congress|Dean Obeidallah|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The building used to be an all-girls school, and when it was initially purchased by Fortune it was dilapidated.
His First Day Out Of Jail After 40 Years: Adjusting To Life Outside|Justin Rohrlich|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
This led to the formation of a Christian militant group to counter the rebels, and all-out sectarian violence exploded.
The Year’s Most Forgotten Humanitarian Crisis|Nina Strochlic|January 1, 2015|DAILY BEAST

In that context, Sotto Sotto was one of the all-out survivors.
The Fiery Death of Sotto Sotto, Toronto’s Celebrity Hotspot|Shinan Govani|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He had discovered that the all-glorious boast of Spain was not exempt from the infirmities of common men.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter
Naturally the conversation fell on the all-absorbing topic of the day and the object of his mission.
The Philippine Islands|John Foreman
English influence was all-powerful at Lisbon and the new envoy had not the talent to counteract it.
Napoleon's Marshals|R. P. Dunn-Pattison
Could the government of the country be now carried on upon principles that were all-powerful twenty—or even fewer—years ago?
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
From Leamington to London was nearly an all-day's run, although the distance is only one hundred miles.
British Highways And Byways From A Motor Car|Thomas D. Murphy

British Dictionary definitions for all (1 of 2)

all

/ (ɔːl) /

determiner

the whole quantity or amount of; totality of; every one of a classall the rice; all men are mortal
(as pronoun; functioning as sing or plural)all of it is nice; all are welcome
(in combination with a noun used as a modifier)an all-ticket match; an all-amateur tournament; an all-night sitting

the greatest possiblein all earnestness

any whateverto lose all hope of recovery; beyond all doubt

above all most of all; especially

after all See after (def. 11)

all along all the time

all but almost; nearlyall but dead

all of no less or smaller thanshe's all of thirteen years

all over

finished; at an endthe affair is all over between us
over the whole area (of something); everywhere (in, on, etc)all over England
typically; representatively (in the phrase that's me (you, him, us, them, etc) all over)Also (Irish): all out
unduly effusive towards
sport in a dominant position over

See all in

all in all

everything consideredall in all, it was a great success
the object of one's attention or interestyou are my all in all

all that or that (usually used with a negative) informal (intensifier)she's not all that intelligent

all the (foll by a comparative adjective or adverb) so much (more or less) than otherwisewe must work all the faster now

all too definitely but regrettablyit's all too true

and all

British informal as well; tooand you can take that smile off your face and all
Southern African a parenthetical filler phrase used at the end of a statement to make a sl ight pause in speaking

and all that informal

and similar or associated things; et ceteracoffee, tea, and all that will be served in the garden
used as a filler or to make what precedes more vague: in this sense, it often occurs with concessive forceshe was sweet and pretty and all that, but I still didn't like her
See that (def. 4)

as all that as one might expect or hopeshe's not as pretty as all that, but she has personality

at all

(used with a negative or in a question) in any way whatsoever or to any extent or degreeI didn't know that at all
even so; anywayI'm surprised you came at all

be all for informal to be strongly in favour of

be all that informal, mainly US to be exceptionally good, talented, or attractive

for all

in so far as; to the extent thatfor all anyone knows, he was a baron
notwithstandingfor all my pushing, I still couldn't move it

for all that in spite of thathe was a nice man for all that

in all altogetherthere were five of them in all

adverb

(in scores of games) apiece; eachthe score at half time was three all

completelyall alone

be all … informal used for emphasis when introducing direct speech or nonverbal communicationhe was all, 'I'm not doing that'

noun

(preceded by my, your, his, etc) (one's) complete effort or interestto give your all; you are my all

totality or whole

Other words from all

Related prefixes: pan-, panto-

Word Origin for all

Old English eall; related to Old High German al, Old Norse allr, Gothic alls all

British Dictionary definitions for all (2 of 2)

all-

combining form

a variant of allo-

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with all

all

In addition to the idioms beginning with all

all along
all along the line
all and sundry
all at once
all at sea
all better
all but
all cylinders
all ears
all else being equal
alley cat
all eyes
all for
all for the best
all gone
all hours
all in a day's work
all in all
all in, be
all in good time
all in one piece
all joking aside
all kinds of
all of
all of a sudden
all of the above
all one
all out
all outdoors, big as
all over
all over but the shouting
all over one
all over the place
all over with
all present and accounted for
all right
all right for you
all right with one
all roads lead to Rome
all set
all sewed up
all shook up
all sorts
all systems go
all talk (and no action)
all that
all that glitters is not gold
all the
all the best
all the better
all the rage
all there
all the same
all the thing
all the time
all the way
all the worse
all things to all people, be
all thumbs
all told
all to the good
all up
all very well
all well and good
all wet
all wool and a yard wide
all work and no play (makes Jack a dull boy)
all year round

also see:

above all
after all
against all odds
as all getout
at all
at all costs
be-all and end-all
beat all
by all accounts
by all means
by all odds
cap it all
fall all over
firing on all cylinders
first of all
for all
for all I care
for all I know
for all one's worth
for all that
get away (from it all)
get one's act (it all) together
go all the way
have all one's buttons
have it all over someone
have it both ways (all)
hit on all cylinders
hold all the aces
in a (all of a) dither
in all
in all good conscience
in all one's born days
in all probability
(all) in the same boat
it's all downhill from here
it's all over with
it takes all sorts
jump all over
know all the answers
know-it-all
laugh all the way to the bank
least of all
let it all hang out
not all it's cracked up to be
not at all
not for all the tea in china
no time at all
of all the nerve
of all things
once and for all
one and all
pull out all the stops
put all one's eggs in one basket
seen one, seen them all
till all hours
to all intents and purposes
(all) to the good
turn out all right
walk all over
warts and all
when all's said and done
with all due respect
with all one's heart
you can't win them all