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the whole of (used in referring to quantity, extent, or duration):
all the cake; all the way; all year.
the whole number of (used in referring to individuals or particulars, taken collectively):
all students.
the greatest possible (used in referring to quality or degree):
with all due respect; with all speed.
every:
all kinds; all sorts.
any; any whatever:
beyond all doubt.
nothing but; only:
The coat is all wool.
dominated by or as if by the conspicuous possession or use of a particular feature:
The colt was all legs. They were all ears, listening attentively to everything she said.
Chiefly Pennsylvania German. all gone; consumed; finished:
The pie is all.
the whole quantity or amount:
He ate all of the peanuts. All are gone.
the whole number; every one:
all of us.
everything:
Is that all you want to say? All is lost.
one’s whole interest, energy, or property:
to give one’s all; to lose one’s all.
(often initial capital letter) the entire universe.
wholly; entirely; completely:
all alone.
only; exclusively:
He spent his income all on pleasure.
each; apiece:
The score was one all.
Archaic. even; just.
above all, before everything else; chiefly:
Above all, the little girl wanted a piano.
after all, in spite of the circumstances; notwithstanding:
He came in time after all.
all at once. (def 14).
all but, almost; very nearly:
These batteries are all but dead.
all in, Northern and Western U.S. very tired; exhausted:
We were all in at the end of the day.
all in all,

everything considered; in general:
All in all, her health is greatly improved.
altogether:
There were twelve absentees all in all.
everything; everything regarded as important:
Painting became his all in all.

all in hand, Printing, Journalism. (of the copy for typesetting a particular article, book, issue, etc.) in the possession of the compositor.
all in the wind, Nautical. too close to the wind.
all out, with all available means or effort:
We went all out to win the war.
all over,

finished; done; ended.
everywhere; in every part.
in every respect; typically.

all standing, Nautical.

in such a way and so suddenly that sails or engines are still set to propel a vessel forward:
The ship ran aground all standing.
fully clothed:
The crew turned in all standing.
fully equipped, as a vessel.

all that, remarkably; entirely; decidedly (used in negative constructions):
It’s not all that different from your other house.
all the better, more advantageous; so much the better:
If the sun shines it will be all the better for our trip.
all there, Informal. mentally competent; not insane or feeble-minded:
Some of his farfetched ideas made us suspect that he wasn’t all there.
all the same. (def 9).
all told. (def 2).
all up,

Printing, Journalism. (of copy) completely set in type.
Informal. with no vestige of hope remaining:
It’s all up with George—they’ve caught him.

and all, together with every other associated or connected attribute, object, or circumstance:
What with the snow and all, we may be a little late.
at all,

in the slightest degree:
I wasn’t surprised at all.
for any reason:
Why bother at all?
in any way:
no offense at all.

for all (that), in spite of; notwithstanding:
For all that, it was a good year.
in all, all included; all together:
a hundred guests in all.
once and for all, for the last time; finally:
The case was settled once and for all when the appeal was denied.
determiner

the whole quantity or amount of; totality of; every one of a class: all the rice, all men are mortal
(as pronoun; functioning as sing or plural): all of it is nice, all are welcome
(in combination with a noun used as a modifier): an all-ticket match, an all-amateur tournament, an all-night sitting

the greatest possible: in all earnestness
any whatever: to lose all hope of recovery, beyond all doubt
above all, most of all; especially
after all, See after (sense 11)
all along, all the time
all but, almost; nearly: all but dead
all of, no less or smaller than: she’s all of thirteen years
all over

finished; at an end: the affair is all over between us
over the whole area (of something); everywhere (in, on, etc): all over England
typically; representatively (in the phrase that’s me (you, him, us, them,etc) all over) Also (Irish) all out
unduly effusive towards
(sport) in a dominant position over

See all in
all in all

everything considered: all in all, it was a great success
the object of one’s attention or interest: you are my all in all

(usually used with a negative) (informal) all that, that, (intensifier): she’s not all that intelligent
(foll by a comparative adjective or adverb) all the, so much (more or less) than otherwise: we must work all the faster now
all too, definitely but regrettably: it’s all too true
and all

(Brit, informal) as well; too: and you can take that smile off your face and all
(South African) a parenthetical filler phrase used at the end of a statement to make a sl ight pause in speaking

(informal) and all that

and similar or associated things; et cetera: coffee, tea, and all that will be served in the garden
used as a filler or to make what precedes more vague: in this sense, it often occurs with concessive force: she was sweet and pretty and all that, but I still didn’t like her
See that (sense 4)

as all that, as one might expect or hope: she’s not as pretty as all that, but she has personality
at all

(used with a negative or in a question) in any way whatsoever or to any extent or degree: I didn’t know that at all
even so; anyway: I’m surprised you came at all

(informal) be all for, to be strongly in favour of
(informal, mainly US) be all that, to be exceptionally good, talented, or attractive
for all

in so far as; to the extent that: for all anyone knows, he was a baron
notwithstanding: for all my pushing, I still couldn’t move it

for all that, in spite of that: he was a nice man for all that
in all, altogether: there were five of them in all
adverb
(in scores of games) apiece; each: the score at half time was three all
completely: all alone
(informal) be all …, used for emphasis when introducing direct speech or nonverbal communication: he was all, ‘I’m not doing that’
noun
preceded by my, your, his, etc. (one’s) complete effort or interest: to give your all, you are my all
totality or whole

Old English eall “all, every, entire,” from Proto-Germanic *alnaz (cf. Old Frisian, Old High German al, Old Norse allr, Gothic alls), with no certain connection outside Germanic.

Combinations with all meaning “wholly, without limit” were common in Old English (e.g. eall-halig “all-holy,” eall-mihtig “all-mighty”) and the method continued to form new compound words throughout the history of English. First record of all out “to one’s full powers” is 1880. All-terrain vehicle first recorded 1968. All clear as a signal of “no danger” is recorded from 1902. All right, indicative of approval, is attested from 1953.

adjective phrase

Intelligent; together: At least Keir is all there

Related Terms

not all there
acute lymphocytic leukemia
Albania-lek (currency)
Having one’s wits about one, mentally competent, as in John may seem absentminded, but believe me, he’s all there. This phrase is often used negatively, as not all there, for being without one’s full faculties. For example, I wonder about Justin; sometimes it seems as if he’s not all there. [ Mid-1800s ]

all along
all along the line
all and sundry
all at once
all at sea
all better
all but
all cylinders
all ears
all else being equal
all eyes
all for
all for the best
all gone
all hours
all in a day’s work
all in all
all in good time
all in one piece
all in, be
all joking aside
all kinds of
all of
all of a sudden
all of the above
all one
all out
all outdoors, big as
all over
all over but the shouting
all over one
all over the place
all over with
all present and accounted for
all right
all right for you
all right with one
all roads lead to Rome
all set
all sewed up
all shook up
all sorts
all systems go
all talk (and no action)
all that
all that glitters is not gold
all the
all the best
all the better
all the rage
all the same
all the thing
all the time
all the way
all the worse
all there
all things to all people, be
all thumbs
all to the good
all told
all up
all very well
all well and good
all wet
all wool and a yard wide
all work and no play (makes Jack a dull boy)
all year round

also see:

above all
after all
against all odds
as all getout
at all
at all costs
be-all and end-all
beat all
by all accounts
by all means
by all odds
cap it all
fall all over
firing on all cylinders
first of all
for all
for all I care
for all I know
for all one’s worth
for all that
get away (from it all)
get one’s act (it all) together
go all the way
have all one’s buttons
have it all over someone
have it both ways (all)
hit on all cylinders
hold all the aces
in a (all of a) dither
in all
in all good conscience
in all one’s born days
in all probability
(all) in the same boat
it’s all downhill from here
it’s all over with
it takes all sorts
jump all over
know all the answers
know-it-all
laugh all the way to the bank
least of all
let it all hang out
not all it’s cracked up to be
not at all
not for all the tea in china
no time at all
of all the nerve
of all things
once and for all
one and all
pull out all the stops
put all one’s eggs in one basket
seen one, seen them all
till all hours
to all intents and purposes
(all) to the good
turn out all right
walk all over
warts and all
when all’s said and done
with all due respect
with all one’s heart
you can’t win them all