all-in

1 of 2

adjective (1)

1
chiefly British : all-inclusive
2
chiefly British : being almost without restrictions
all-in wrestling

all in

2 of 2

adjective (2)

variants or less commonly all-in
1
: tired, exhausted
Atticus said as tactfully as he could that he just didn't think he could stand a pageant tonight, he was all in.Harper Lee
Inside, the invalid had gone to bed; her mother said, "She was all in," and expressed pity for her, for the first time.Edna O'Brien
2
: fully committed to or involved in something
The Diamondbacks are all-in for this year. It's why they brought in J. D. Martinez at the trade deadline. They have a healthy mix of young and veteran players, and they're looking to make a run this October.Kevin Skiver
often used in the phrase go all in
With my bonus in tow, I got the far-fetched idea I didn't feel like working that type of pace anymore. So I went all in on real estate on my own.Philip Michael

Note: In poker, to go all in is to bet everything on a hand.

The best my opponent could have at this point was a 5-high straight, so I went all in—my full $220,000 was riding on this hand. The last card was a Jack—and I was out.John Grochowski

Examples of all-in in a Sentence

Adjective (1) all-in seven-day tour of Scotland Adjective (2) was all in after an evening of dancing and partying
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
Chicago appears to be all-in for the 2025 season and a trade for Castillo would help in that pursuit of success. Paul Du Quenoy, Newsweek, 1 Jan. 2025 Brown earned a long-term extension only six months ago, but Kings management decided to pull the plug with a roster seemingly all-in after acquiring DeMar DeRozan. Evan Sidery, Forbes, 31 Dec. 2024 While Ingram could provide some of the on-ball scoring punch this team has lacked with most of its perimeter options, giving up Porter to go all-in on Ingram would be a big risk. William Guillory, The Athletic, 30 Dec. 2024 The Russian Army has gone all-in to capture every inch of the surrounding area — a flashpoint of the war and potentially a significant prize for Mr. Putin. Gaëlle Girbes, New York Times, 28 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for all-in 

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective (1)

1886, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective (2)

1901, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of all-in was in 1886

Dictionary Entries Near all-in

Cite this Entry

“All-in.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/all-in. Accessed 15 Jan. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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