Grammatically Correct 6/22/05
A weekly grammar tip created by Academic Center Peer Writing Tutors.
University of Houston-Victoria
3007 N. Ben Wilson
Victoria, TX 77901
When to use: All Together and Altogether
by W. Scott Harkey
All together and altogether are often used interchangeably. However, these two words actually differ a great deal in definition despite their similarity in appearance. Here are some examples to help clear up this mistaken identity.

All together is an adjective. It is properly used when referring to something in which an entire group acts or is acted upon simultaneously.

Ex. The chickens where packed all together in a small pen.

Altogether is an adverb. It is correctly used when referring to something in its entirety—when everything is included wholly or completely.

Ex. There were altogether too many chickens in the pen.

Recommended Grammar Website of the Week
by W. Scott Harkey

In addition to our website, we recommend the following site: The Common Errors in English Page at http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~brians/errors/errors.html. This site contains an alphabetical list of common errors found in the English language.

 

Test Your Knowledge
by W. Scott Harkey
Test your understanding of the correct use of all together and altogether by answering the following sentences:

1. (All together, Altogether), the collection of board members left the compound.
2. The screen went out (all together, altogether).
3. The workers stood up (all together, altogether) and walked out.

ANSWERS

1. All together, the collection of board members left the compound.
2. The screen went out altogether.
3. The workers stood up all together and walked out.

 

Grammatically Correct is a grammar tip of the week created by Academic Center Peer Writing Tutors at the University of Houston-Victoria in Victoria, Texas.

Comments about this newsletter should be directed to Summer Leibensperger, leibenspergers@uhv.edu.

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