1
: an embroidered, printed, or lace fabric with a design covering most of the surface
2
: a pattern or design in which a single unit is repeated so as to cover an entire surface
1
: over the whole extent
decorated all over with a flower pattern
2
: everywhere
looked all over for the book
3
: in every respect : thoroughly
she is her mother all over
1
informal
: in eagerly affectionate, attentive, or aggressive pursuit of (someone or something)
the band's fans were all over them
2
informal
: very critical of (someone) in usually an angry or unreasonable way
the press was all over the coach after the loss
Synonyms
Examples of allover in a Sentence
Adjective
a rug with an allover pattern
Adverb
I've looked all over—even outside—and I can't find my other shoe.
his writing style is his mentor's all over
Recent Examples on the Web
Halie Lesavage, Harper's BAZAAR, 22 June 2023
The teen wore a gown by Lebanese designer Shady Zeineldine, which featured allover gold sequins and a turtleneck style.
—Jessica Booth, Peoplemag, 25 Jan. 2023
The Bear, Abby Elliott opted for a brilliant color to accent her bump on the carpet, wearing a Pamella Roland gown crafted in allover sequins in a rich orange topaz.
—Laurie Brookins, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Jan. 2023
Its door has a high-arched frame and a decorative allover circular pattern made from plastic.
—Kevin Cortez, Popular Mechanics, 7 Sep. 2022
Take, for example, the resurgence of the allover pattern room.
—Hadley Keller, House Beautiful, 25 May 2022
On luggage, the Trefoil was joined by the Gucci logo spelled backwards, while the horsebit crossbody and tote were decked out in an allover trefoil print.
—Tiziana Cardini, Vogue, 10 May 2022
The 11 pictures at Hemphill Artworks, unexhibited for many years, shift from allover compositions to ones in which the watery colors are stacked horizontally, although still lushly blended.
—Washington Post, 4 Feb. 2022
His paintings often capture a particular gray, allover light, in which the sun struggles (and fails) to make it through the clouds and the horizon is lost in a confusion of haze.
—Washington Post, 16 July 2021
Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 28 July 2023
The idea behind using allover pattern is simple: The less information there is for the eye to read, the less work the mind has to do.
—Sophie Donelson, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Aug. 2023
The color can be worn—as the model does here—in an allover look, like a dress or a suit.
—Madeline Dangmann, Glamour, 2 Aug. 2023
If your sunburn is less of an allover situation and more of a spot-treatment job, dab concealer onto only the reddest parts of your face.
—Amber Rambharose, Glamour, 26 May 2021
White chenille fabric stripes run along this cotton comforter, which comes in a crisp allover white or soft grey.
—Ellen McAlpine, Good Housekeeping, 22 Dec. 2022
First coined by House Beautiful in 2019, Grandmillennial is a term used to describe a young design lover passionate about revisiting old-school classics, like chintz, trellis, wicker, chinoiserie, allover pattern, and trellis, all seen in this room by Amy Berry.
—Hadley Keller, House Beautiful, 14 Oct. 2022
Nicole Kidman For her high-fashion date night with husband Keith Urban, Nicole Kidman wears a custom Giorgio Armani Privé allover sequin gown with oversized rosettes on the shoulder and hip, a mega slit, plus Harry Winston jewels and Omega watch.
—Alex Apatoff, Peoplemag, 12 Mar. 2023
The allover tone in a glossy application gave the space more dimension.
—Joanna Saltz, House Beautiful, 26 Jan. 2023
Celia Shatzman, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2023
Brittany Mahomes Turns Her Gym Into a Football Field for Son Bronze's First Birthday
Brittany also included a video of her son chomping down on his green cake, which ended up all over his face and hands.
—Hannah Sacks, Peoplemag, 28 Nov. 2023
Grapes grow all over the world, practically everywhere birds fly and spread their seeds.
—Alex Mayyasi, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 Nov. 2023
The criticism hasn’t stopped Shein’s meteoric rise among shoppers all over the world.
—Matthew Monks, Fortune, 28 Nov. 2023
But the Industrial Revolution was not kind to mortadella, which was adapted for canning in the 19th century and, like Spam, shipped all over the world; Brazil and Puerto Rico have strong mortadella fan bases.
—Julia Moskin, New York Times, 28 Nov. 2023
After two weeks in the hospital, Tony came home to bags of get-well cards from all over the country.
—Jennifer Gonnerman, The New Yorker, 27 Nov. 2023
McClain was chasing Mackey’s king all over the board, taunting him relentlessly, urging him to wave the white flag.
—Ian Shapira, Washington Post, 24 Nov. 2023
The script was all over the place, and Will [Ferrell] and Adam [McKay] weren’t really proven yet.
—Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 17 Nov. 2023
Bynadine El-Bawab, ABC News, 4 Mar. 2023
The carbon emissions from that fuel get captured, sent back to Texas, and start the process all over again.
—Alan Murray, Fortune, 3 Mar. 2023
About the only thing the Biden Administration and Congress could do right now is just declare immigration bankruptcy and start all over again, and have amnesty, but there isn’t the political will for that right now, unfortunately.
—Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 2 Mar. 2023
The Mexico City stop kicked off a promotional tour that has taken Jordan all over the world.
—Angelique Jackson, Variety, 1 Mar. 2023
Her mother [Sharon Adams] bought [English-language learning software], and my daughter taught herself, with her mother’s help, to speak all over again.
—Justin Baldoni, WSJ, 1 Mar. 2023
Weather forecasters say March may come in like a lion, bringing misery all over again to a state that recently had hundreds of thousands sitting in darkness.
—Bill Laytner, Detroit Free Press, 28 Feb. 2023
Later, her work as a documentarian took her all over the world, with her children often tagging along.
—WIRED, 23 Feb. 2023
Wearing the feathers has taken you all over country, and others have portrayed the chief during their events in Mobile.
—al, 19 Feb. 2023
See More
Adjective
Dip a toe under the sea with the twinkly embellishments on SimonMiller's beachy collection for Mango, or dive all the way in with Marysia's allover shell print.
—Halie Lesavage, Harper's BAZAAR, 22 June 2023
The teen wore a gown by Lebanese designer Shady Zeineldine, which featured allover gold sequins and a turtleneck style.
—Jessica Booth, Peoplemag, 25 Jan. 2023
The Bear, Abby Elliott opted for a brilliant color to accent her bump on the carpet, wearing a Pamella Roland gown crafted in allover sequins in a rich orange topaz.
—Laurie Brookins, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Jan. 2023
Its door has a high-arched frame and a decorative allover circular pattern made from plastic.
—Kevin Cortez, Popular Mechanics, 7 Sep. 2022
Take, for example, the resurgence of the allover pattern room.
—Hadley Keller, House Beautiful, 25 May 2022
On luggage, the Trefoil was joined by the Gucci logo spelled backwards, while the horsebit crossbody and tote were decked out in an allover trefoil print.
—Tiziana Cardini, Vogue, 10 May 2022
The 11 pictures at Hemphill Artworks, unexhibited for many years, shift from allover compositions to ones in which the watery colors are stacked horizontally, although still lushly blended.
—Washington Post, 4 Feb. 2022
His paintings often capture a particular gray, allover light, in which the sun struggles (and fails) to make it through the clouds and the horizon is lost in a confusion of haze.
—Washington Post, 16 July 2021
Noun
Where Mehring’s allover paintings appear physically impenetrable, this one seems to beckon the viewer to enter.
—Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 28 July 2023
The idea behind using allover pattern is simple: The less information there is for the eye to read, the less work the mind has to do.
—Sophie Donelson, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Aug. 2023
The color can be worn—as the model does here—in an allover look, like a dress or a suit.
—Madeline Dangmann, Glamour, 2 Aug. 2023
If your sunburn is less of an allover situation and more of a spot-treatment job, dab concealer onto only the reddest parts of your face.
—Amber Rambharose, Glamour, 26 May 2021
White chenille fabric stripes run along this cotton comforter, which comes in a crisp allover white or soft grey.
—Ellen McAlpine, Good Housekeeping, 22 Dec. 2022
First coined by House Beautiful in 2019, Grandmillennial is a term used to describe a young design lover passionate about revisiting old-school classics, like chintz, trellis, wicker, chinoiserie, allover pattern, and trellis, all seen in this room by Amy Berry.
—Hadley Keller, House Beautiful, 14 Oct. 2022
Nicole Kidman For her high-fashion date night with husband Keith Urban, Nicole Kidman wears a custom Giorgio Armani Privé allover sequin gown with oversized rosettes on the shoulder and hip, a mega slit, plus Harry Winston jewels and Omega watch.
—Alex Apatoff, Peoplemag, 12 Mar. 2023
The allover tone in a glossy application gave the space more dimension.
—Joanna Saltz, House Beautiful, 26 Jan. 2023
Adverb
Tucked into the Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee, people come from all over the world to stay at the fabled Blackberry Farm.
—Celia Shatzman, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2023
Brittany Mahomes Turns Her Gym Into a Football Field for Son Bronze's First Birthday
Brittany also included a video of her son chomping down on his green cake, which ended up all over his face and hands.
—Hannah Sacks, Peoplemag, 28 Nov. 2023
Grapes grow all over the world, practically everywhere birds fly and spread their seeds.
—Alex Mayyasi, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 Nov. 2023
The criticism hasn’t stopped Shein’s meteoric rise among shoppers all over the world.
—Matthew Monks, Fortune, 28 Nov. 2023
But the Industrial Revolution was not kind to mortadella, which was adapted for canning in the 19th century and, like Spam, shipped all over the world; Brazil and Puerto Rico have strong mortadella fan bases.
—Julia Moskin, New York Times, 28 Nov. 2023
After two weeks in the hospital, Tony came home to bags of get-well cards from all over the country.
—Jennifer Gonnerman, The New Yorker, 27 Nov. 2023
McClain was chasing Mackey’s king all over the board, taunting him relentlessly, urging him to wave the white flag.
—Ian Shapira, Washington Post, 24 Nov. 2023
The script was all over the place, and Will [Ferrell] and Adam [McKay] weren’t really proven yet.
—Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 17 Nov. 2023
Preposition
Attorney Ven Johnson, who represents the families of students who were killed in the shooting, criticized the ruling and the law behind it, saying his clients feel victimized all over again.
—Bynadine El-Bawab, ABC News, 4 Mar. 2023
The carbon emissions from that fuel get captured, sent back to Texas, and start the process all over again.
—Alan Murray, Fortune, 3 Mar. 2023
About the only thing the Biden Administration and Congress could do right now is just declare immigration bankruptcy and start all over again, and have amnesty, but there isn’t the political will for that right now, unfortunately.
—Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 2 Mar. 2023
The Mexico City stop kicked off a promotional tour that has taken Jordan all over the world.
—Angelique Jackson, Variety, 1 Mar. 2023
Her mother [Sharon Adams] bought [English-language learning software], and my daughter taught herself, with her mother’s help, to speak all over again.
—Justin Baldoni, WSJ, 1 Mar. 2023
Weather forecasters say March may come in like a lion, bringing misery all over again to a state that recently had hundreds of thousands sitting in darkness.
—Bill Laytner, Detroit Free Press, 28 Feb. 2023
Later, her work as a documentarian took her all over the world, with her children often tagging along.
—WIRED, 23 Feb. 2023
Wearing the feathers has taken you all over country, and others have portrayed the chief during their events in Mobile.
—al, 19 Feb. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'allover.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Dictionary Entries Near allover
Cite this Entry
“Allover.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/allover. Accessed 8 Dec. 2023.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
allover
1 of 3 adjective
all·over
ˈȯ-ˌlō-vər
: covering the whole surface of something
a sweater with an allover pattern
all over
2 of 3 adverball over
3 of 3 preposition1
: in very affectionate, attentive, or aggressive pursuit of
the band's fans were all over them
2
: in or into a state marked by all-out criticism of
reporters were all over the coach after the loss
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share