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Definition of 'all'

Word Frequency

all

(ɔːl )
1. predeterminer
You use all to indicate that you are referring to the whole of a particular group or thing or to everyone or everything of a particular kind.
...the restaurant that Hugh and all his friends go to.
He lost all his money at a blackjack table in Las Vegas.
All is also a determiner.
There is built-in storage space in all bedrooms.
85 percent of all American households owe money on mortgages.
Germany, like all great nations, will not change its personality.
He was passionate about all literature.
All is also a quantifier.
He was told to pack up all of his letters and personal belongings.
He was talking to all of us.
All is also a pronoun.
We produce our own hair-care products, all based on herbal recipes.
I'd spent all I had, every last penny.
All is also an emphasizing pronoun.
Milk, oily fish and egg all contain vitamin D.
We all admire professionalism and dedication.
2. determiner
You use all to refer to the whole of a particular period of time.
George had to cut grass all afternoon.
She's been feeling bad all week.
All is also a predeterminer.
She's worked all her life.
He was looking at me all the time.
All is also a quantifier.
He spent all of that afternoon polishing the silver.
Two-thirds of the women interviewed think about food a lot or all of the time.
3. pronoun
You use all to refer to a situation or to life in general.
All is silent on the island now.
As you'll have read in our news pages, all has not been well of late.
4. adverb
You use all to emphasize that something is completely true, or happens everywhere or always, or on every occasion.
[emphasis]
He loves animals and he knows all about them.
Parts for the aircraft will be made all round the world.
I got scared and I ran and left her all alone.
He was doing it all by himself.
All around he could hear people calling out his name.
Synonyms: completely, totally, fully, entirely   More Synonyms of all
5. pronoun
You use all at the beginning of a clause when you are emphasizing that something is the only thing that is important.
[emphasis]
He said all that remained was to agree to a time and venue.
All you ever want to do is go shopping!
All I could say was, 'I'm sorry'.
6. determiner
You use all in expressions such as in all sincerity and in all probability to emphasize that you are being sincere or that something is very likely.
[emphasis]
In all fairness he had to admit that she was neither dishonest nor lazy.
If the pool was open, we'd in all probability still be swimming in it.
In all seriousness, there is nothing else I can do.
7. adverb [v-link ADV adj-graded]
You can use all in front of an adjective when you want to emphasize a quality that affects someone or something temporarily.
[informal, spoken, emphasis]
You've gone all chatty.
He came over all dizzy when he stood up.
8. adverb
You use all when you are talking about an equal score in a game. For example, if the score is three all, both players or teams have three points.
9. 
all the more
10. pronoun
You use all in expressions such as seen it all and done it all to emphasize that someone has had a lot of experience of something.
[emphasis]
You can't have it all - life is about choice, time is limited.
Here's a man who has seen it all, tasted and heard it all.
11. 
above all
12. 
after all
13. 
after all
14. 
and all
15. 
all in all
16. 
at all
17. 
all but
18. 
all but
19. 
for all
20. 
for all
21. 
give one's all/put one's all
22. 
in all
23. 
all in
24. 
all in
25. 
of all
26. 
of all
27. 
of all the X
28. 
all of
29. 
one and all
30. 
all that
31. 
that's all
32. 
all very well
More Synonyms of all
COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Word Frequency

all in British

(ɔːl )
determiner
1. 
a. 
the whole quantity or amount of; totality of; every one of a class
all the rice
all men are mortal
b. 
(as pronoun; functioning as sing or plural)
all of it is nice
all are welcome
c. 
(in combination with a noun used as a modifier)
an all-ticket match
an all-amateur tournament
an all-night sitting
2. 
the greatest possible
in all earnestness
3. 
any whatever
to lose all hope of recovery
beyond all doubt
4.  above all
5.  after all
6.  all along
7.  all but
8.  all of
9.  all over
10.  all in
11.  all in all
12.  all that
13.  all the
14.  all too
15.  and all
16.  and all that
17.  as all that
18.  at all
19.  be all for
20.  be all that
21.  for all
22.  for all that
23.  in all
adverb
24. 
(in scores of games) apiece; each
the score at half time was three all
25. 
completely
all alone
26.  be all …
noun
27. (preceded by my, your, his, etc)
(one's) complete effort or interest
to give your all
you are my all
28. 
totality or whole
▶ Related prefixes: , pan-, panto-
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Word origin of 'all'
Old English eall; related to Old High German al, Old Norse allr, Gothic alls all
Word Frequency

all in American

(ɔl ; ôl)
adjective
1. 
the whole extent or quantity of
all New England, all the gold
2. 
the entire number of
all the men went
3. 
every one of
all men must eat
4. 
the greatest possible; as much as possible
said in all sincerity
5. 
any; any whatever
true beyond all question
6. 
every
now used only in such phrases as all manner of men
7. 
alone; only
life is not all pleasure
8. 
seeming to be nothing but
he was all arms and legs
9.  US, Dialectal
completely used up, consumed, over with, etc.
the bread is all
pronoun
10.  [with pl. v.]
everyone
all must die
11.  [with pl. v.]
every one
all of us are here; all of the pencils are sharpened
12. 
everything; the whole thing, matter, situation, etc.
all is over between them
13. 
every part or bit
all of it is gone
noun
14. 
one's whole property, effort, etc.
gave his all
15. 
a totality; whole
adverb
16. 
wholly; entirely; altogether; quite
all worn out, riding all through the night
17. 
apiece
a score of thirty all
Idioms:
after all
all but
all in
all in all
all out
all over
all the
all the better (or worse)
all the farther (or closer, etc.)
all the same
and all
as all get-out
at all
for all
in all
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Word origin of 'all'
ME al, all < OE eal < IE *al-no-s < base *al-, *ol-, beyond, exceeding > L ultra

Example sentences containing 'all'

These examples have been automatically selected and may contain sensitive content. Read more…
The courtyard stayed packed with a few hundred people salsa dancing all night. The Sun (2016)Part of the problem is almost all his teachers have been women. Times, Sunday Times (2016)We all want to get something big and we are working for it. The Sun (2016)Tell me my mum and dad are going to be all right. Times, Sunday Times (2016)This all seems incredibly frivolous and sounds suspiciously like a waste of time. Times, Sunday Times (2016)He claims he uses all his products. Times, Sunday Times (2016)Who said all political careers end in failure? Times, Sunday Times (2016)When you see scenes like that at the end it makes it all worthwhile. Times, Sunday Times (2017)We try to give all the best to our players but sometimes it is difficult. The Sun (2016)The current economic crisis gives us all an opportunity to rethink our priorities. Times, Sunday Times (2009)The thin plastic bottles are used by almost all drinks manufacturers. Times, Sunday Times (2016)The only way to escape it completely is to live in the desert all alone. Christianity Today (2000)We all want to know that the tests are to the same standard. Times, Sunday Times (2012)When you have this list you may already have a spot it could all possibly go. Times, Sunday Times (2009)With hindsight it all seemed more vengeful than petulant. Times, Sunday Times (2007)Which technology series uses all nine letters? The Sun (2014)Yet some people still insist all political careers end in failure. The Sun (2016)Says we all need to make time to smell the roses. Times, Sunday Times (2006)Why the hell play it then when all these people have extra time drinking. The Sun (2013)All four also demand damages for a decrease in the value of their properties. The Sun (2012)Within no time at all he was panting and sweating. Times, Sunday Times (2012)Yet they all seem cheery about their arrangements. Times, Sunday Times (2016)We are all going in our own directions and all do completely different things. The Sun (2009)We all know that and are aware of it. The Sun (2010)We shall all have to put our shoulder to the wheel. Times, Sunday Times (2016)They cannot be altogether surprised if people now lump them all together in impotent fury. Times, Sunday Times (2009)What she had said about hoping that he would not come was all hypocrisy. William Thackeray Vanity Fair (1837)Wonder if my change is all right. Judith Flanders Consuming Passions: Leisure and Pleasure in Victorian Britain (2006)We all have this great power of belief in us. Vera Peiffer POSITIVE THINKING: Everything you have always known about positive thinking but were afraid to put into practice (2001)He made all here last time and could get an easy lead again. The Sun (2011)Would you like to turn all bitter and sour foods into delicious desserts? Times, Sunday Times (2008)

Trends of 'all'

Extremely Common. all is one of the 1000 most commonly used words in the Collins dictionary

View usage for:

Nearby words of 'all'

  • alkylation
  • alkylic
  • alkyne
  • all
  • all aboard!
  • all along
  • all along the line

  • All ENGLISH words that begin with 'A'

Related Terms of 'all'

  • all-
  • all-
  • y'all
  • all in
  • all-in

  • View more related words

Source

Definition of all from the Collins English Dictionary

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Scrabble score for 'all': 3
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