Altogether or all together – which one is correct?
Is it altogether or all together? It’s easy to get confused because the mentioned words sound identical. Are there any differences in meanings? Scroll down and see how to use altogether and all together properly!
Altogether or all together – which form is correct?
Do not hesitate to use altogether in sentences. Don’t be afraid to use the phrase all together, too. In fact, both altogether and all together are correct forms! There’s no incorrect form here. However, you need to discover the proper usage of these words first.
What’s the meaning of altogether?
All together and altogether have distinct meanings in modern English. Altogether is an adverb which means in total, wholly, completely, taken as a whole, or with everything considered. It’s worth emphasising that altogether can only be used as an adverb. Examples?
- Mini skirts are banned altogether from the dresscode.
- I am altogether convinced she’s a good woman.
What’s the meaning of all together?
The definition of all together is “together in a single group”. All together means all here or everything present. It can be used in a sentence as follows: All together we have managed to do great things last year. It is interesting that we can separate the words all and together and the meaning will be the same. For example, we all sang together and we sang all together mean exactly the same thing.
What’s the difference between altogether and all together?
Altogether and all together have separate functions in the sentence – this is the crucial difference. They cannot be used interchangeably. Altogether is a single word and all together is a phrase which consists of two words. The latter refers to things or people gathered in one place.
What are the synonyms of the word altogether?
- Completely,
- totally,
- in all,
- entirely,
- wholly.
What are other forms of the phrase all together?
- All at once,
- contemporaneously,
- simultaneously.
Altogether or all together – it’s all clear now! Examples from literature
It wasn’t altogether surprising, therefore, that Dudley kept running his hand nervously over his backside, and walking sideways from room to room, so as not to present the same target to the enemy.
J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter And The Goblet of Fire
But soon the sight of seeing us all together like that, her with my dad, page after page, turned Doris’s laughter into tears.
Jason Reynolds, When I Was the Greatest
