all-purpose
Americanadjective
adjective
Etymology
Origin of all-purpose
First recorded in 1925–30
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.
Then I come back in with a second pass: an all-purpose spray.
From Salon ● May 5, 2026
More deals followed, including the purchase of New Orleans-style food and spices maker Zatarain’s in 2003 and all-purpose seasoning brand Lawry’s in 2008.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 31, 2026
The new all-purpose councils - known as unitary authorities - are due to take effect in 2028 for a county of 1.9 million people.
From BBC ● Mar. 25, 2026
One undisputed example of contracts that went awry is $6 million allotted to AllHere, a tech startup that was hired to design an all-purpose, artificial intelligence chatbot for L.A.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2026
We enter the all-purpose store and sit down at the luncheonette counter.
From "On the Far Side of the Mountain" by Jean Craighead George
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.
