in the altogether

Idioms  

1. Also,; in the raw. Naked, nude, as in The art class wanted a model to pose in the altogether, or She was stripped to the buff when the doorbell rang, or He always sleeps in the raw. The first of these colloquial terms dates from the late 1800s. In the buff, a seemingly modern locution dates from the 1600s, buff alluding to a soft, undyed leather, buffskin, that also gave its name to the color. The use of raw, presumably also alluding to raw (undressed) leather, dates from the early 1900s.

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Example Sentences

There is much more to be studied — Shang blades incised with demonic faces and Taíno grooved stone balls from the Caribbean — in the altogether transformative display.

From New York Times

The gadget took panoramic photographs on behalf of an architect client, he added, not intrusive images of women in the altogether.

From Los Angeles Times

Nash, however, admits he spent the same amount of time in the altogether more sedate setting of Goa, the beach resort on India's west coast, "Yeah, I took one for the team," he smiles.

From BBC

Barcelona has its nude beaches, she said, but nudity on the street was not an acute problem, though there was one well-known activist who habitually rode the subway in the altogether.

From New York Times

Her better feelings rushed back, her old confidence and reverence; and, in the altogether nebulo-chaotic condition of her mind, she felt as if, in his turn, Godfrey had just appeared for her deliverance.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• bare
• defenseless
• exposed
• helpless
• nude