All vs Entire

When to use each in English, with meaning, register, and examples.

All

High-frequency chunk A1 determiner

Entire

Top 2,000 (common) B2 adjective

Most common: All

	All	Entire
Pronunciation	🇬🇧 /["/ɔːl/"]/ 🇺🇸 /["/ɔːl/"]/	🇬🇧 /["/ɪnˈtaɪə(r)/"]/ 🇺🇸 /["/ɪnˈtaɪər/"]/
Meaning	Everything or everyone, without exception.	Whole or complete.
Example	All the students in the class passed the exam.	He ate the entire pizza by himself.
Register	Neutral	Neutral
How common	High-frequency chunk	Top 2,000 (common)
CEFR level	A1	B2
Part of speech	determiner	adjective
Collocations	all day, all the time, all over, all of us	entire country, entire book, entire team, entire life, entire scope
Antonyms	none, part, some	partial, incomplete, broken
Common mistakes	'All' used without a noun (e.g. saying 'I love all' instead of 'I love all of them')., Confused with 'all of' when it shouldn't be (e.g. 'All of the students came' is correct; 'All students came' is also correct in informal contexts).	Confusing 'entire' with 'whole' in informal situations., Incorrectly using 'entire' with uncountable nouns., Using 'entirely' when 'entire' is needed.
Usage notes	Use 'all' in both spoken and written English when referring to the entirety of a group. Avoid using 'all' when referring to a specific subset, as it implies inclusivity.	Use 'entire' when referring to something completely or fully. It's suitable for most contexts, except very casual conversations where 'whole' might be more common.

See it in real clips

You'd have to buy out the entire cabin and the first-class flight attendant.

Better Call Saul › S1 E1

The only way that entire car is worth 500 bucks...

Men have emptied entire clips at them and hit nothing but air.

You'd have to buy out the entire cabin and the first-class flight attendant.

Better Call Saul › S1 E1

The only way that entire car is worth 500 bucks...

Entire

Frequently asked questions: All vs Entire

What's the difference between All and Entire?

All: Everything or everyone, without exception. Entire: Whole or complete.

Which is more common: All and Entire?

All is the most common in everyday English.

Which is more advanced: All and Entire?

Entire is the highest level, at B2, on the CEFR scale.

Are All and Entire the same CEFR level?

All: A1, Entire: B2 on the CEFR scale.

What part of speech are All and Entire?

All: determiner, Entire: adjective.

Can you show an example of each?

All: All the students in the class passed the exam. Entire: He ate the entire pizza by himself.

Can I use All and Entire interchangeably?

Not always. All and Entire are related and overlap in some contexts, but they differ in register, how common they are, and usage, so swapping one for another can change the meaning or tone. Check the differences above before substituting.