all

1 of 4

adjective

ˈȯl

Synonyms of all next

: the whole amount, quantity, or extent of

needed all the courage they had

sat up all night

: as much as possible

spoke in all seriousness

: every member or individual component of

all men will go

all five children were present

: the whole number or sum of

all the angles of a triangle are equal to two right angles

: every

all manner of hardship

: any whatever

beyond all doubt

: nothing but : only

all work and no play

: completely taken up with, given to, or absorbed by

became all attention

: having or seeming to have (some physical feature) in conspicuous excess or prominence

all legs

: paying full attention with

all ears

dialect : used up : entirely consumed

—used especially of food and drink

: being more than one person or thing

I don't know who all is coming.

all

2 of 4

adverb

: wholly, quite

sat all alone

—often used as an intensive

all out of proportion

all over the yard

it wasn't all that funny

: selected as the best (as at a sport) within an area or organization

—used in combination

all-league halfback

obsolete : only, exclusively

archaic : just

: so much

all the better for it

: for each side : apiece

the score is two all

all

3 of 4

pronoun

singular or plural in construction

: the whole number, quantity, or amount : totality

all that I have

all of us

all of the books

—used in such phrases as for all I know, for all I care, and for all the good it does to indicate a lack of knowledge, interest, or effectiveness

: everybody, everything

gave equal attention to all

that is all

all

4 of 4

noun

: the whole of one's possessions, resources, or energy

gave his all for the cause

Phrases

all the

: as much of … as : as much of a … as

all the home I ever had

all in all

: on the whole : generally

all in all, things might have been worse

and all

: and everything else especially of a kind suggested by a previous context

cards to fill out with … numbers and all—

Sally Quinn

Choose the Right Synonym for all

whole, entire, total, all mean including everything or everyone without exception.

whole implies that nothing has been omitted, ignored, abated, or taken away.

read the whole book

entire may suggest a state of completeness or perfection to which nothing can be added.

the entire population was wiped out

total implies that everything has been counted, weighed, measured, or considered.

the total number of people present

all may equal whole, entire, or total.

all proceeds go to charity

Examples of all in a Sentence

Adjective I've been waiting all week to see her. He had to walk all the way home. She works all year round. He'll need all the help he can get. Someone took all the candy. Adverb She has traveled all around the world. This money will be all yours when I die. She had buttons all down the side of her dress. I forgot all about paying the bill. The kids got all excited when they saw Santa Claus. Pronoun a joyous holiday to one and all!

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Adjective

Former President Donald Trump will do a Fox News town hall next week focused on issues impacting women, before an all-female audience, the network said. —

Ted Johnson, Deadline, 11 Oct. 2024 President Joe Biden and Democrats nationally have moved swiftly to highlight the ruling, made by an all-Republican court, as evidence of Republicans overstepping on reproductive health care. —

Jonathan Shorman, Kansas City Star, 28 Feb. 2024

Adverb

These elaborate gingerbread houses, many life-sized, are extraordinary creations, a true fusion of pastry, art, carpentry, and architecture, all under the supervision of the resident pastry chef. —

Joseph V Micallef, Forbes, 18 Dec. 2024 Prior to the case confirmed in the Louisiana patient, cases had been mild and patients had all recovered after receiving antiviral medication, according to the CDC and state health officials. —

Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 18 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for all

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English al, all, alle, going back to Old English eall (West Saxon), all (Anglian), going back to Germanic *alla- (whence also Old Frisian al, alle "the whole of," Old Saxon all, Old High German al, all, Old Norse allr, Gothic alls), probably going back to *al-no- or *ol-no-, derivative of a base *ala-/*ola- seen in compounds (as Old English ælmihtig almighty entry 1, Old Saxon alohwīt "completely white," Old High German alawāri "quite true," Gothic alabrunsts "burnt offering," calque of Greek holokaútōma), of uncertain origin

Note: Both the correct repertoire of comparable forms and a valid Indo-European reconstruction have been subjects of dispute. Perhaps directly comparable to Germanic *ol-no- is Welsh oll, holl "the whole, all" (with h- of secondary origin); the same base might be present in Old Irish uile "all, every," if going back to *ol-i̯o-. (Old Irish oll "great, ample" is probably not related.) Outside of Germanic and Celtic other comparisons have been suggested, as Oscan allo "whole, entire" and Lithuanian aliái (in aliái víenas "all, everyone"). As an Indo-European reconstruction, Kroonen (Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic) proposes *h₂el-nó- for Germanic and *h₂ol-i̯o- for Old Irish uile, though the assumption of ablaut seems arbitrary. Whatever the ultimate origin, an etymon restricted to western (European) Indo-European.

Adverb

Middle English al, all, going back to Old English all, representing adverbial uses of the quantifier all entry 1

Pronoun

Middle English al, all, going back to Old English all, pronominal use of the quantifier all entry 1

Noun

nominal use of the pronoun all entry 3

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adverb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Pronoun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

1593, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of all was before the 12th century

See more words from the same century

Phrases Containing all

Cite this Entry

Style

“All.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/all. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.

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Kids Definition

all

1 of 3 adjective

ˈȯl

: the whole of

sat up all night

: as much as possible

in all seriousness

: every one of

all students can go

: any whatever

beyond all doubt

all

2 of 3 adverb

: wholly, altogether

sat all alone

all across the country

: so much

all the better for it

: for each side : apiece

the score is two all

all

3 of 3 pronoun

: the whole number, quantity, or amount

all that I have

all of us

—used in such phrases as for all I know, for all I care, and for all the good it does to show a lack of knowledge, interest, or effectiveness

: everyone, everything

known to all

sacrificed all for love

Medical Definition

ALL

abbreviation

acute lymphoblastic leukemia; acute lymphocytic leukemia

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all

adjective

adverb

pronoun

noun

Synonyms

Examples of all in a Sentence

Word History

Dictionary Entries Near all

Cite this Entry

Kids Definition

Medical Definition