All and sundry
Suggest a CorrectionMeaning
Every person without distinction or exception; everyone in a particular group or place. Now mildly formal or old-fashioned. It normally refers to people, often with a suggestion that information or access was given more widely than was sensible. Regional use: Medieval English and Scots evidence; now chiefly British and other Commonwealth English.
Origin
Sundry descends from Old English syndrig, meaning separate, distinct or individual, so it did not originally mean a miscellaneous collection. The pairing all and sundry is recorded in the late fourteenth century and effectively gathers the whole group together with its separate members. A 1389 record from the Wemyss area of Scotland contains the expression; that surviving regional record establishes medieval use but cannot identify who first formed or spoke it.
Research Sources
Usage Examples
- The draft was circulated to all and sundry before the committee had approved it.
- He told all and sundry that the old theatre would reopen in September.
- Inviting all and sundry would overwhelm the small hall within minutes.