What does it mean to say all but something?

What does it mean to say all but something?

phrase. All but a particular person or thing means everyone or everything except that person or thing. The general was an unattractive man to all but his most ardent admirers.

Is all but certain meaning?

All but certain means he is very certain, but not certain. (Saying completely certain or absolutely certain is overkill because certain denotes 100\%.) Very certain would probably be he believes he knows, but thinks there is small chance he could be wrong.

What does all but unknown mean?

Short version: If something is “all but unknown,” it’s “almost completely unknown;” that is, very rare. Precisely. Elym97 said: The phrase “all but” is the same “everything but”. In other words, all but unknown means they were very well known.

Is all but impossible meaning?

“All but impossible” means it’s possible, but only barely.

What is it called when you use one word to mean another?

It’s called a malapropism. This is where you say one word but your audience realizes you mean another. Playwrights often put this into a character’s mouth to degrade that character in the audience’s mind, while purposefully making their audience laugh and feel superior. But it is also common in everyday speech.

What is it called when you say one thing and do another?

The noun for someone who says one thing but does another is “hypocrite.” The adjective form is “hypocritical.”

Is all but one meaning?

phrase. All but a particular person or thing means everyone or everything except that person or thing.

What does all but guaranteed mean?

It’s ‘all but guaranteed’ means it is as close to being guaranteed as it can get without the absolute assurance of a guarantee. So the speaker is almost promising a guarantee but won’t make a complete commitment. You could also say it is virtually guaranteed or as good as guaranteed.

Can you use the word literally to mean just the opposite?

But people increasingly use “literally” to give extreme emphasis to a statement that cannot be true, as in: “My head literally exploded when I read Merriam-Webster, among others, is now sanctioning the use of literally to mean just the opposite.”

What is the meaning of ‘all but’?

“All but” can have two meanings. First, it can mean “all except”. For example: “all but one have died” means “only one survived”. Second, it can mean “nearly”. For example, “all but forgotten” means “nearly forgotten”. This second use is indeed the opposite of the literal meaning and should in my opinion be avoided in order to prevent confusion.

What does all but idiom has two meanings?

“All but” idiom has two meanings? “Close all tabs but this one” (Any modern application with a number of tabs might have this as an option.) It means “close all the tabs, but not this one”. “With that goal, the championship is all but decided”.

Should a word mean one thing and its opposite?

We understand that many have chosen this particular issue as the one about which they choose to draw a line in the sand, on the grounds that a word should not mean one thing and its opposite (a fairly common thing in English). But a living language is a language that is always changing; this change may be lovely, and it may be ugly.