Cool MateAll vs All of us
When to use each in English, with meaning, register, and examples.
All
High-frequency chunkA1determiner
All of us
Top 5,000 (fairly common)
Most common: All
| All | All of us | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | 🇬🇧 /["/ɔːl/"]/🇺🇸 /["/ɔːl/"]/ | 🇬🇧 //ɔːl əv ʌs//🇺🇸 //ɔl əv ʌs// |
| Meaning | Everything or everyone, without exception. | Everyone in this group |
| Example | All the students in the class passed the exam. | All of us are excited for the trip next week. |
| Register | Neutral | Neutral |
| How common | High-frequency chunk | Top 5,000 (fairly common) |
| CEFR level | A1 | - |
| Part of speech | determiner | |
| Collocations | all day, all the time, all over, all of us | support all of us, help all of us, all of us together |
| Antonyms | none, part, some | - |
| 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). | Using 'all of our' instead of 'all of us', Confusing with 'all of them' |
| 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 'all of us' when referring to a group including the speaker. Avoid in formal writing as it may seem too casual. |
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Frequently asked questions: All vs All of us
What's the difference between All and All of us?
All: Everything or everyone, without exception. All of us: Everyone in this group
Which is more common: All and All of us?
All is the most common in everyday English.
Can you show an example of each?
All: All the students in the class passed the exam. All of us: All of us are excited for the trip next week.
Can I use All and All of us interchangeably?
Not always. All and All of us 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.