ALL


Meaning of ALL in English

I. ˈȯl adjective

Etymology: Middle English al, all, from Old English all, eall; akin to Old High German al all, Old Norse allr, Gothic alls, and perhaps to Old Irish oll large, beyond, Latin uls beyond, Old Slavic lani in the preceding year, Sanskrit araṇa foreign; basic meaning: beyond

1.

a. : that is the whole amount or quantity of

all rubbish should be cleared out of cellars

needed all the courage he had

it all began one rainy afternoon

: that is the whole extent or duration of

all the year round

sat up all night

one of the greatest victories in all history

b. : as much as possible : the greatest possible

wished them all happiness

traveled with all speed

was told in all seriousness

2.

a. : every member or individual component of : each one of — used distributively with a plural noun or pronoun to mean that a statement is true of every individual considered

all things to all men

all my friends were there

a film suitable for all ages

refugees all , from one thing or another — Punch

they all came late

b. of members of a class : each and every one of — used in logic as a verbalized equivalent of the universal quantifier

3. : the whole number or sum of — used collectively with a plural noun or pronoun to mean that a statement is true of the sum of the individuals considered

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

all these together are not worth 10 dollars

after all these years

4. : every — used chiefly in the phrases all manner of, all kind of

endured all manner of hardship

5. : any whatever

beyond all doubt

denied all responsibility

6. : nothing but : only , alone

I was born to speak all mirth and no matter — Shakespeare

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

found him all gratitude

suddenly became all attention

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

a body all legs

a face all pimples

c. : marked by acute or eager concentration on full perception by : paying full attention with

at the mention of bicycles the boy was all ears

7. dialect : used up : entirely consumed — used especially of food and drink

the keg of beer was all

8. : being more than one person or thing — used chiefly in speech especially after interrogative and plural personal pronouns

who all was there

what all do you have to do

— often written with hyphen between pronoun and all

we- all had better wait

— see you-all

Synonyms: see whole

- all the

- all two

II. adverb

Etymology: Middle English al, all, from Old English all, eall, from all, eall, adjective

1. : wholly , altogether , quite

sat all alone

a statement that was not all true

all gone

arrived all too late to be of service

he was all for the racy phrase — W.S.Maugham

— often used before other words and phrases or (chiefly in speech) after interrogative adverbs to intensify meaning

dealers all across the country

ran into the house all covered with mud

could hear moaning all around him

all too few

that's all very human and would harm nobody — Deems Taylor

where all have you been

— often used in compounds to indicate representation of a whole area

an all- British soccer team

or selection of the best

an all- girl team

2. obsolete : exclusively , only

I shall never marry like my sisters, to love my father all — Shakespeare

3. archaic : just : quite as indicated

a damsel lay deploring, all on a rock reclined — John Gay

— often merely intensive

4. : by that amount : so much : very much — used with the and an adverb or adjective in the comparative degree

all the better for a night's sleep

from private sources and therefore all the more revealing

5. : for each side : apiece , each

the score is two all

- all of

- all the

III. pronoun

Etymology: Middle English al, all (from al, all, adjective) & alle, plural of al, all

1. : the whole number, quantity, or amount : totality — often used with a following relative clause

all that I have

and with of and a pronoun and in recent usage with of and a noun

all of us

all of the books

2. : everybody , everything : everything in a particular scene or sequence of events

through all he sat immovable

sacrificed all for love

to make it plain to one and all

that is all

when all is said and done

- and all

IV. noun

( -s )

Etymology: Middle English al, all, from al, all, adjective

1.

a. : the whole of one's possessions or of what one holds dear

to lose one's all

b. alls plural , now chiefly dialect : belongings : personal possessions

2. usually capitalized

a. : whole , totality

b. : the universe

Webster's New International English Dictionary.      Новый международный словарь английского языка Webster.