entire

American  

[en-tahyuhr] / ɛnˈtaɪər /

adjective

1. having all the parts or elements; whole; complete.

   He wrote the entire novel in only six weeks.

   Antonyms:

   partial

2. full or thorough.

   He has been given entire freedom of choice in this matter.

3. not broken, mutilated, or decayed; intact.

   We were fortunate to find this relic entire.

   Antonyms:

   defective

4. unimpaired or undiminished.

   His entire energies have gone into making the enterprise a success.

5. being wholly of one piece; undivided; continuous.

   The entire mood of the symphony was joyful.

6. Botany. without notches or indentations, as leaves.

7. not gelded.

   an entire horse.

8. Obsolete. wholly of one kind; unmixed or pure.

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noun

1. Archaic. the whole; entirety.

2. an ungelded animal, especially a stallion.

entire British  

/ ɪnˈtaɪə /

adjective

1. (prenominal) whole; complete

   the entire project is going well

2. (prenominal) without reservation or exception; total

   you have my entire support

3. not broken or damaged; intact

4. consisting of a single piece or section; undivided; continuous

5. (of leaves, petals, etc) having a smooth margin not broken up into teeth or lobes

6. not castrated

   an entire horse

7. obsolete of one substance or kind; unmixed; pure

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noun

1. a less common word for entirety

2. an uncastrated horse

3. philately

   1. a complete item consisting of an envelope, postcard, or wrapper with stamps affixed

   2. (of a stamp) placed on an envelope, postcard, etc, and bearing postal directions

Usage

What does entire mean? Entire describes something that is complete or whole, as in With my parents away for the weekend, I have the entire house to myself. Entire also describes something that is in one piece or continuous, as in The entire mood of the class was worried as our teacher handed out the tests. Example: The entire series is perfect and there are no bad episodes.

Other Word Forms

• entireness noun
• subentire adjective

Etymology

Origin of entire

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English entere, from Middle French entier, from Latin integrum, accusative of integer “whole”; see integer

Explanation

Think of the word entire as referring to all of anything. Now think of that "all" as being whole — not broken or lacking in any way. Remember that, and you will have the entire meaning of the word. Entire is based on the Latin integrum, which came from the prefix in-, "not," and tangere, "to touch," and thus means "untouched." From there it developed into the 14th-century Old French entier, meaning "unbroken or complete," and then, through Middle English, into our modern word entire. One use of the word you don't see every day is to describe an uncastrated horse — an "entire horse" is a stallion. Gives a pretty interesting picture of the word, doesn't it?

Example Sentences

The agency was one of the best investments across the entire government.

From Slate • Apr. 23, 2026

Around the same time, Srinivasan was captivated by early large language models, predicting they would soon replace entire categories of journalism.

From Salon • Apr. 23, 2026

“It changed my entire conception of who I was in the community,” Silva says.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 22, 2026

The post, which appeared to tag several accounts known for providing Fantasy Premier League advice, has been deleted, along with the entire account on which it appeared.

From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026

It looked as if the entire clan had come north.

From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver

Related Words

• full
• integrated
• unified