eall

See also: eall-

Old English

Alternative forms

• all — Anglian
• æal, æall, eal, eæll
• ᚪᛚ (al) — Ruthwell Cross

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *all, from Proto-Germanic *allaz. Cognate with Old Frisian al, Old Saxon all, Old Dutch al, Old High German al, Old Norse allr.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /æ͜ɑll/, [æ͜ɑɫ]
• Rhymes: -æ͜ɑll

Adjective

eall

1. all

   Ealle menn sind unġelīċe.

   All people are different.

   • c. 990, Wessex Gospels, Matthew 24:38-39

     On þǣm dagum ǣr þǣm flōde wǣron menn etende and drincende, and wīfiġende and ġifte sellende, ōþ þone dæġ þe Nōe on þā earċe ēode, and hīe nysson ǣr sē flōd cōm and nam hīe ealle.

     In the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they didn't know until the flood came and took them all.

   • c. 992, Ælfric, "On the Lord's Ascension"

     Eft he cwæð, "Ic bēo mid ēow eallum dagum, ōð þisre worulde geendunge," seðe lyfað and rixað mid þam Ælmihtigan Fæder and ðam Halgum Gaste á on ecnysse. Amen.

     Again he said, "I will be with you on all days, until the ending of this world," who liveth and reigneth with the Almighty Father and the Holy Ghost ever to eternity. Amen.

2. whole, entire

   Iċ lufiġe ealne mīnne hīred.

   I love my whole family.

   • late 9th century, Old English Martyrology

     Sume ġēare him bærst miċel wund on ōðrum þēo, and hē stōd þurh eall þæt ġēar on ānum fēt.

     One year a large wound burst open on one of his thighs, and he stood on one leg for the whole year.

   • c. 992, Ælfric, "The Nativity of St. Paul the Apostle"

     Petrus āna spræc for ealne þone hēap.

     Peter by himself spoke for the whole group.

Usage notes

• Sometimes treated as indeclinable.
• Eall generally does not form partitive genitives, as it is expressing the whole of something rather than a smaller part of it: ealle þā cyningas ġegaderodon on þǣre byrġ ("all of the kings gathered in the city", or literally, "all the kings gathered in the city").

Declension

Declension of eall — Strong only

Singular	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative	eall	eall	eall
Accusative	ealne	ealle	eall
Genitive	ealles	ealre	ealles
Dative	eallum	ealre	eallum
Instrumental	ealle	ealre	ealle
Plural	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative	ealle	ealla, ealle	eall
Accusative	ealle	ealla, ealle	eall
Genitive	ealra	ealra	ealra
Dative	eallum	eallum	eallum
Instrumental	eallum	eallum	eallum

Pronoun

eall

1. everything
   • late 9th century, King Alfred's translation of Boethius' The Consolation of Philosophy

     For þīnre æfweardnesse, hire þyncþ eall nāwiht þæt hēo hæfþ.

     Without you, everything she has seems like nothing to her.

2. (in the plural) everyone

Adverb

eall

1. completely

   Mid wundrunge hē ġeseah þæt sē cniht wæs eall fæġer.

   With astonishment, he noticed that the boy was completely beautiful.

   • 10th century, The Wanderer:

     Ġemon hē seleseċġas · ond sincþege,
     hū hine on ġeoguðe · his goldwine
     wenede tō wiste · Wyn eal ġedrēas.

     He remembers hall-men and takings of treasures,
     how his goldfriend accustomed him
     to feast on youth. Mirth has completely perished.

2. altogether, in all, all
   • late 10th century, Ælfric's Lives of Saints

     Iċ wāt eall be þām.

     I know all about that.

Coordinate terms

• æl-

Descendants

• Middle English: all, al
  • English: all
  • Geordie: a'
  • Scots: a', a, aw, aa, aal (Shetland)
  • Yola: aul, aal, all, al