at all
Idioms-
In any way or manner, as in Is she able to sing at all?
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To any extent, as in Was she at all surprised?
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For any reason, as in Why bother at all?
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In the slightest degree, under any circumstances, as in She simply refused to walk at all . This construction often occurs in the negative, as in He was not at all frightened . All four senses of this phrase date from the mid-1300s.
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.
It’s all, frankly, a lot and not enough at all.
From Salon ● Aug. 26, 2026
From 4 September onwards, PCS members at all sites will work to rule and withdraw cooperation in coordinated action with Prospect, another trade union, PCS said.
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
Edmonds and Frahm ask: "What and who determined a king's 'canonicity'? How did this intersect with Assyrian cultural memory or notions of kingship? Was the AKL's function at all practical, or solely ceremonial?"
From Science Daily ● Aug. 26, 2026
A full third of parents said they had confusion about the process — either not knowing how to do it or that it had to be done at all.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 26, 2026
That’s not at all what I was saying.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
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.
