all-American

1 of 2

adjective

all-Amer·​i·​can ˌȯl-ə-ˈmer-ə-kən How to pronounce all-American (audio)
-ˈme-rə-
1
a
or less commonly all-America : selected (as by a poll of journalists) as one of the best in the U.S. in a particular category at a particular time
an all-American quarterback
b
: having only all-American participants
an all-American basketball team
2
: composed wholly of American elements
3
: representative or typical of the U.S. or its ideals
an all-American boy
her all-American optimism
4
: of or relating to the American nations as a group

all-American

2 of 2

noun

1
or less commonly all-America : one (such as an athlete) that is voted all-American
2
: one that has all-American qualities or characteristics
a clean-cut all-American

Examples of all-American in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Adjective
The 22-year-old stole a miraculous, all-American hero set point against Adrian Mannarino and the crowd were up for it. Tim Ellis, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025 From there, the plot pretzels itself into typical noir convolution, giving us an excuse to meet all sorts of characters, not least a shady local preacher played by Chris Evans, who uses his almost embarrassingly all-American good looks to convey treacle and snake oil. Daniel Bromfield, Mercury News, 29 Aug. 2025
Noun
Cole recalled this time as a stab at conventional all-American life – at least on the surface. oregonlive, 23 Mar. 2023 As in David Lynch’s Blue Velvet (1986), a young man descends into a twilight zone behind an explicitly all-American façade. Ed Park, The New York Review of Books, 14 Mar. 2023 See All Example Sentences for all-American

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1887, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

1888, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of all-American was in 1887

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“All-American.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/all-American. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

all-American

adjective
all-Amer·​i·​can
ˌȯ-lə-ˈmer-ə-kən
1
: representing or typical of the U.S. or its ideals
an all-American boy
2
: selected as the best in the U.S.
the all-American football team
all-American noun
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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