All the while

a period or interval of time:
to wait a long while; he arrived a short while ago.
archaic. a particular time or occasion.
during or in the time that.
throughout the time that; as long as.
even though; although:
while she appreciated the honor, she could not accept the position.
at the same time that (showing an -n-logous or corresponding action):
the floor was strewn with books, while magazines covered the tables.
archaic. .
to cause (time) to p-ss, especially in some easy or pleasant manner (usually followed by away).
all the while, at or during this time; all along:
she realized all the while that the cake would fall.
worth one’s while, worth one’s time, trouble, or expense:
the art exhibition that opened yesterday isn’t worth your while.
conjunction
(subordinating) at the same time that: please light the fire while i’m cooking
(subordinating) all the time that: i stay inside while it’s raining
(subordinating) in spite of the fact that: while i agree about his brilliance i still think he’s rude
(coordinating) whereas; and in contrast: flats are expensive, while houses are cheap
(subordinating; used with a gerund) during the activity of: while walking i often whistle
preposition, conjunction
(scot & northern english, dialect) another word for until you’ll have to wait while monday for these sheets, you’ll never make any progress while you listen to me
noun
(usually used in adverbial phrases) a period or interval of time: once in a long while
trouble or time (esp in the phrase worth one’s while): it’s hardly worth your while to begin work today
the while, at that time: he was working the while
n.

old english hwile, accusative of hwil “a sp-ce of time,” from proto-germanic -khwilo (cf. old saxon hwil, old frisian hwile, old high german hwila, german weile, gothic hveila “sp-ce of time, while”), originally “rest” (cf. old norse hvila “bed,” hvild “rest”), from pie -qwi- “rest” (cf. avestan shaitish “joy,” old persian šiyatish “joy,” latin quies “rest, repose, quiet,” old church slavonic po-koji “rest”). notion of “period of rest” became in germanic “period of time.”

now largely superseded by time except in formulaic constructions (e.g. all the while). middle english sense of “time spent in doing something” now only preserved in worthwhile and phrases such as worth (one’s) while. as a conjunction (late old english), it represents old english þa hwile þe; form whiles is recorded from early 13c.; whilst is from late 14c., with excrescent -st as in amongst, amidst (see amid).
v.

“to cause (time) to p-ss without dullness, 1630s, earlier “to occupy or engage (someone or something) for a period of time” (c.1600), new formation from while (n.), not considered to be from middle english hwulen “to have leisure,” which is from a germanic verb form of while (n.) (cf. german weilen “to stay, linger”). an -ssociation with phrases such as shakespearean beguile the day, latin diem decipere, french tromper le temps “has led to the subst-tution of wile v by some modern writers” [oed] (see wile).

while away
while back
while there’s life there’s hope

also see:

all the time (while)
a while back
every now and then (once in a while)
fiddle while rome burns
get out while the getting is good
in a while
make hay while the sun shines
once in a while
quit while you’re ahead
strike while the iron’s hot
worth one’s while