altogether

[awl-tuh-geth-er, awl-tuh-geth-er]

adverb

1. wholly; entirely; completely; quite.

   altogether fitting.

   Synonyms: absolutely, totally, utterly

2. with all or everything included.

   The debt amounted altogether to twenty dollars.

3. with everything considered; on the whole.

   Altogether, I'm glad it's over.

altogether

/ ˌɔːltəˈɡɛðə, ˈɔːltəˌɡɛðə /

adverb

1. with everything included

   altogether he owed me sixty pounds

2. completely; utterly; totally

   he was altogether mad

3. on the whole

   altogether it was a very good party

noun

1. informal,  naked

Confusables Note

The forms altogether and all together, though often indistinguishable in speech, are distinct in meaning. The adverb altogether means “wholly, entirely, completely”: an altogether confused scene. The phrase all together means “in a group”: The children were all together in the kitchen. The word all can be omitted without seriously affecting the meaning: The children were together in the kitchen.

Word History and Origins

Origin of altogether¹

First recorded in 1125–75; variant of Middle English altogeder; all, together

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. in the altogether, nude.

   When the phone rang she had just stepped out of the bathtub and was in the altogether.

Example Sentences

Ads opposing the proposition aired less frequently before disappearing from television altogether in recent days.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Some economists have ruled out further cuts altogether, with a few now pointing to a rising probability that the next move in interest rates could be upward.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Of those, around four to five million are expected to lose health care coverage altogether because they won't be able to find other means, some experts suggest.

Read more on BBC

That means Daryl Clark, who started scored England's one and only try late on, could miss out altogether.

Read more on BBC

For a true splurge, a small number of clubs can offer passengers flying commercial a whiff of the private-jet lifestyle, bypassing the hated airport experience altogether.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• absolutely 
• fully 
• perfectly 
• quite 
• thoroughly 
• totally 
• utterly 
• wholly