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all-over
all-overadjectivecovering the entire surface
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all over
all over
Everywhere. The phrase may be used alone, as in I've looked all over for that book , or The very thought of poison ivy makes me itch all over . In addition it can be used as a preposition, meaning “throughout,” as in The news spread all over town . [Early 1600s] Also see far and wide .
all-over
Britishadjective
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Everywhere. The phrase may be used alone, as in I've looked all over for that book , or The very thought of poison ivy makes me itch all over . In addition it can be used as a preposition, meaning “throughout,” as in The news spread all over town . [Early 1600s] Also see far and wide .
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In all respects, as in He is his Aunt Mary all over . Charles Lamb had this usage in a letter (1799) about a poem: “The last lines ... are Burns all over.” [Early 1700s]
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Also, all over again . Again from the beginning. For example, They're going to play the piece all over , or Do you mean you're starting all over again? [Mid-1500s]
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Also, all over with . Quite finished, completed, as in By the time I arrived the game was all over , or Now that she passed the test, her problems are all over with . This phrase uses over in the sense of “finished,” a usage dating from the 1300s. Also see all over but the shouting ; have it (all over) , def. 4.
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.
See Examples For:
The shoes feature an all-over sandy suede, with gold and jade accents on the shank plate and outsole.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2024
He told me the all-over skin laser treatment he's been having has reduced his skin age by 22 years, the greatest age reduction in any part of his body.
From BBC ● Apr. 20, 2023
It's the perfect, just-set icing on top of pastries, cookies, and cakes at your favorite bakeries — perhaps most identified as the all-over glaze atop petit fours.
From Salon ● Dec. 19, 2021
“It’s an all-over dry brushing, then you get painted with this honey heal glaze that’s amazing for your whole body,” says Holm.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 29, 2021
Her neck and wrists were bare, and her hair was a mess—a pile, an all-over glob of red curls.
From "Eleanor & Park" by Rainbow Rowell
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“If it was all over now, do I feel like I did what I wanted to do? And if not, what would that be?” he mused.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
The impact of that stance could be profound, way beyond some admirably shiny No 10 signs emblazoned all over one floor of a government building in Manchester.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
“They’re all over the place and sometimes in places you don’t even realize — they’re not even advertised. It’s important to understanding the potential of where this is and where it is going.”
From Salon ● Jul. 27, 2026
The Liuzzo family was harassed for their mother’s activism even after her death, but the event galvanized activists all over the country, becoming one impetus for Congress to finally pass the landmark 1965 legislation.
From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2026
Psychologists, surgeons, and neurologists came from all over the world to present scientific papers on frontal cortex injuries.
From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman
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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.