all-purpose
Americanadjective
adjective
Etymology
Origin of all-purpose
First recorded in 1925–30
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
What on Earth possessed Nolan, a notoriously detail-oriented director, to tap the all-purpose flour of movie stars to portray one of the most storied heroes in literature?
From Salon ● Aug. 2, 2026
Then there is “drama,” that vague, all-purpose term that gives the film its title.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 2, 2026
One undisputed example of contracts that went awry is $6 million allotted to AllHere, a tech startup that was hired to design an all-purpose, artificial intelligence chatbot for L.A.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2026
The government is expected to announce in March whether Essex will go from two layers of 15 authorities to between three and five all-purpose unitary councils.
From BBC ● Feb. 19, 2026
Once the all-purpose solution, Washington was now the still-potent problem, a kind of Trojan horse planted squarely in the Virginia fortress.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
