All but

All but
All All, adv. 1. Wholly; completely; altogether; entirely; quite; very; as, all bedewed; my friend is all for amusement. ``And cheeks all pale.'' --Byron. [1913 Webster]

Note: In the ancient phrases, all too dear, all too much, all so long, etc., this word retains its appropriate sense or becomes intensive. [1913 Webster]

2. Even; just. (Often a mere intensive adjunct.) [Obs. or Poet.] [1913 Webster]

All as his straying flock he fed. --Spenser. [1913 Webster]

A damsel lay deploring All on a rock reclined. --Gay. [1913 Webster]

{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. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • All but — But But (b[u^]t), prep., adv. & conj. [OE. bute, buten, AS. b[=u]tan, without, on the outside, except, besides; pref. be + [=u]tan outward, without, fr. [=u]t out. Primarily, b[=u]tan, as well as [=u]t, is an adverb. [root]198. See {By}, {Out};… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • all but — (something) 1. almost. In some places, bus service has all but disappeared. 2. everyone or everything except those mentioned. All but the weakest plants survived the hot weather …   New idioms dictionary

  • all but — If someone all but does something, they almost do it, but don t manage to …   The small dictionary of idiomes

  • all but — ► all but 1) very nearly. 2) all except. Main Entry: ↑all …   English terms dictionary

  • all but — adverb : very nearly : almost makes travel all but impossible all but fell in love with him marched forward all but unopposed the pain that is all but a pleasure W.S.Gilbert …   Useful english dictionary

  • all but — adverb Very nearly. The food is all but finished. <!Note: Do not add the sense all except , as in all but three of them were left , as it is not a set phrase and its meaning can be derived from all and but Syn: almost, nearly, nigh on …   Wiktionary

  • all but — {adv. phr.} Very nearly; almost. * /Crows all but destroyed a farmer s field of corn./ * /The hikers were exhausted and all but frozen when they were found./ …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • all but — {adv. phr.} Very nearly; almost. * /Crows all but destroyed a farmer s field of corn./ * /The hikers were exhausted and all but frozen when they were found./ …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • all\ but — adv. phr. Very nearly; almost. Crows all but destroyed a farmer s field of corn. The hikers were exhausted and all but frozen when they were found …   Словарь американских идиом

  • all but — adverb Date: 1598 very nearly ; almost < would be all but impossible > …   New Collegiate Dictionary

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