"all" - meanings, definitions, synonyms, thesaurus and antonyms

\All\, a. [OE. al, pl. alle, AS. eal, pl. ealle,
Northumbrian alle, akin to D. & OHG. al, Ger. all, Icel.
allr. Dan. al, Sw. all, Goth. alls; and perh. to Ir. and
Gael. uile, W. oll.]
1. The whole quantity, extent, duration, amount, quality, or
   degree of; the whole; the whole number of; any whatever;
   every; as, all the wheat; all the land; all the year; all
   the strength; all happiness; all abundance; loss of all
   power; beyond all doubt; you will see us all (or all of
   us).

         Prove all things: hold fast that which is good. --1
                                               Thess. v. 21.

2. Any. [Obs.] ``Without all remedy.'' --Shak.

Note: When the definite article ``the,'' or a possessive or a
      demonstrative pronoun, is joined to the noun that all
      qualifies, all precedes the article or the pronoun; as,
      all the cattle; all my labor; all his wealth; all our
      families; all your citizens; all their property; all
      other joys.

Note: This word, not only in popular language, but in the
      Scriptures, often signifies, indefinitely, a large
      portion or number, or a great part. Thus, all the
      cattle in Egypt died, all Judea and all the region
      round about Jordan, all men held John as a prophet, are
      not to be understood in a literal sense, but as
      including a large part, or very great numbers.

3. Only; alone; nothing but.

         I was born to speak all mirth and no matter. --Shak.

{All the whole}, the whole (emphatically). [Obs.] ``All the
   whole army.'' --Shak.

\All\, adv.
1. Wholly; completely; altogether; entirely; quite; very; as,
   all bedewed; my friend is all for amusement. ``And cheeks
   all pale.'' --Byron.



Note: In the ancient phrases, all too dear, all too much, all
      so long, etc., this word retains its appropriate sense
      or becomes intensive.

2. Even; just. (Often a mere intensive adjunct.) [Obs. or
   Poet.]

         All as his straying flock he fed.     --Spenser.

         A damsel lay deploring All on a rock reclined.
                                               --Gay.

{All to}, or {All-to}. In such phrases as ``all to rent,''
   ``all to break,'' ``all-to frozen,'' etc., which are of
   frequent occurrence in our old authors, the all and the to
   have commonly been regarded as forming a compound adverb,
   equivalent in meaning to entirely, completely, altogether.
   But the sense of entireness lies wholly in the word all
   (as it does in ``all forlorn,'' and similar expressions),
   and the to properly belongs to the following word, being a
   kind of intensive prefix (orig. meaning asunder and
   answering to the LG. ter-, HG. zer-). It is frequently to
   be met with in old books, used without the all. Thus
   Wyclif says, ``The vail of the temple was to rent:'' and
   of Judas, ``He was hanged and to-burst the middle:'' i.
   e., burst in two, or asunder.

{All along}. See under {Along}.

{All and some}, individually and collectively, one and all.
   [Obs.] ``Displeased all and some.'' --Fairfax.

{All but}.
   (a) Scarcely; not even. [Obs.] --Shak.
   (b) Almost; nearly. ``The fine arts were all but
       proscribed.'' --Macaulay.

{All hollow}, entirely, completely; as, to beat any one all
   hollow. [Low]

{All one}, the same thing in effect; that is, wholly the same
   thing.

{All over}, over the whole extent; thoroughly; wholly; as,
   she is her mother all over. [Colloq.]

{All the better}, wholly the better; that is, better by the
   whole difference.

{All the same}, nevertheless. ``There they [certain
   phenomena] remain rooted all the same, whether we
   recognize them or not.'' --J. C. Shairp. ``But Rugby is a
   very nice place all the same.'' --T. Arnold. -- See also
   under {All}, n.

\All\, n.
The whole number, quantity, or amount; the entire thing;
everything included or concerned; the aggregate; the whole;
totality; everything or every person; as, our all is at
stake.

      Death, as the Psalmist saith, is certain to all.
                                               --Shak.

      All that thou seest is mine.             --Gen. xxxi.
                                               43.

Note: All is used with of, like a partitive; as, all of a
      thing, all of us.

{After all}, after considering everything to the contrary;
   nevertheless.

{All in all}, a phrase which signifies all things to a
   person, or everything desired; (also adverbially) wholly;
   altogether.

         Thou shalt be all in all, and I in thee, Forever.
                                               --Milton.

         Trust me not at all, or all in all.   --Tennyson.

{All in the wind} (Naut.), a phrase denoting that the sails
   are parallel with the course of the wind, so as to shake.


{All told}, all counted; in all.

{And all}, and the rest; and everything connected. ``Bring
   our crown and all.'' --Shak.

{At all}.
(a) In every respect; wholly; thoroughly. [Obs.] ``She is a
    shrew at al(l).'' --Chaucer.
(b) A phrase much used by way of enforcement or emphasis,
    usually in negative or interrogative sentences, and
    signifying in any way or respect; in the least degree or
    to the least extent; in the least; under any
    circumstances; as, he has no ambition at all; has he any
    property at all? ``Nothing at all.'' --Shak. ``If thy
    father at all miss me.'' --1 Sam. xx. 6.

{Over all}, everywhere. [Obs.] --Chaucer.

Note: All is much used in composition to enlarge the meaning,
      or add force to a word. In some instances, it is
      completely incorporated into words, and its final
      consonant is dropped, as in almighty, already, always:
      but, in most instances, it is an adverb prefixed to
      adjectives or participles, but usually with a hyphen,
      as, all-bountiful, all-glorious, allimportant,
      all-surrounding, etc. In others it is an adjective; as,
      allpower, all-giver. Anciently many words, as, alabout,
      alaground, etc., were compounded with all, which are
      now written separately.

\All\, conj. [Orig. all, adv., wholly: used with though or
if, which being dropped before the subjunctive left all as if
in the sense although.]
Although; albeit. [Obs.]

      All they were wondrous loth.             --Spenser.