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all
/ɔːl/
entire quantity
All the students passed the exam.
Every single student succeeded in the exam.
general
the whole of something; every part of something
She ate all the cake.
She consumed the entire cake.
All of my friends are here.
Every single one of my friends has arrived.
Used with singular or plural nouns; often followed by 'of' when used with pronouns or determiners.
general
completely; entirely
I am all ready for the trip.
I am completely prepared for the trip.
The room was all dark.
The room was completely dark.
Used as an adverb to emphasize completeness.
general
the whole number or amount of something
All of the money was spent.
The entire amount of money was used up.
Can function as a pronoun to refer to the entire group.
Collocations
Related Phrases
Pro Tip
Positioning with nouns
Place 'all' before singular nouns (e.g., 'all the book') and after determiners like 'the', 'my', or 'this' when referring to a specific group.
Gold Rule
Avoid redundancy
Do not use 'all' with 'every' or 'each' in the same phrase (e.g., 'all every student' is incorrect).
Word Origin
Old English 'eall', of Germanic origin; related to Old High German 'al', Old Norse 'allr', and Latin 'omnis'.
Usage Notes
Used before singular nouns to mean 'every kind of' (e.g., 'all the time'). When used with plural nouns, it emphasizes the entire group. Avoid redundancy like 'all of them all'—use 'all of them' or 'them all'.
Word Breakdown
all
complete/total
rootEnglish Dictionary