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Altogether Common

Altogether has 6 different meanings across 2 categories:

Noun · Adverb

Definitions
Noun
1

informal terms for nakedness

"in the raw"

"in the altogether"

"in his birthday suit"

2

A state of nakedness. (Especially in the phrase in the altogether)

"After falling off his horse, he ended up lying on the ground in the altogether."

In plain English: Altogether as a noun refers to all of something considered as a single group or whole.

"The piano was broken, so we had to buy an altogether new instrument for the band."

Adverb
1

to a complete degree or to the full or entire extent (`whole' is often used informally for `wholly')

"he was wholly convinced"

"entirely satisfied with the meal"

"it was completely different from what we expected"

"was completely at fault"

"a totally new situation"

"the directions were all wrong"

"it was not altogether her fault"

"an altogether new approach"

"a whole new idea"

"she felt right at home"

"he fell right into the trap"

2

with everything included or counted

"altogether he earns close to a million dollars"

3

with everything considered (and neglecting details)

"altogether, I'm sorry it happened"

"all in all, it's not so bad"

4

Completely, wholly, or without exception.

"The storm destroyed the entire village altogether."

In plain English: Altogether means completely, entirely, or all at once when you are talking about something being done as a whole group.

"We decided to cancel our plans altogether due to the bad weather."

Usage: Use altogether to mean completely or entirely when describing a total degree, such as "I am altogether exhausted." Do not confuse it with all together, which refers to people or things being gathered in one place.

Example Sentences
"We decided to cancel our plans altogether due to the bad weather." adv
"The piano was broken, so we had to buy an altogether new instrument for the band." noun
"She felt altogether tired after working all night." noun
"The project came together altogether by the weekend deadline." noun
"I am altogether against spending money on unnecessary things." noun
Related Terms
Antonyms
part
Broader Terms (hypernyms)
nakedness

Origin

Altogether comes from Middle English, where it combined "all" and "together" to mean completely or as a whole. This phrase traveled into modern English with that same sense of totality rather than shifting in meaning over time.

Rhyming Words
her cher wher ther sher oher other moher ather ocher upher uther asher ofher ether maher taher acher usher opher
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