Phrase guide

by all means

prep_phrase · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

prep_phrase

Meaning 1

Emphatically yes; certainly; definitely.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • By all means take as much salt as you need: that's what neighbors are for.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: absolutely, of course, to be sure, undoubtedly

Antonyms: none provided

2

prep_phrase

Meaning 2

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see by, all, means.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

adverb

Meaning 3

definitely or certainly

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • Visit us by all means

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: by no means

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

36 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: определено (opredeleno) — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Chinese Cantonese: 千祈 (cin1 kei4) — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Chinese Mandarin: 千萬 /千万 (qiānwàn) — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Finnish: kaikin mokomin — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Finnish: ihmeessä — emphatically yes, definitely
  • German: unbedingt — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Icelandic: fyrir alla muni — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Icelandic: endilega — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Icelandic: um að gera — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Italian: pure — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Japanese: どうしても (dōshitemo) — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Japanese: きっと (kitto) — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Latin: quam maxime — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Latin: quoquomodo — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Macedonian: се́како (sékako) — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Polish: zdecydowanie — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Polish: jak najbardziej — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Polish: ze wszech miar — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Portuguese: absolutamente — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Portuguese: com certeza — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Portuguese: sem dúvida — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Russian: обяза́тельно (objazátelʹno) — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Russian: во что́ бы то ни ста́ло (vo štó by to ni stálo) — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Russian: любо́й цено́й (ljubój cenój) — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Russian: ра́ди бо́га (rádi bóga) — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Scottish Gaelic: air a h-uile cor — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Serbo-Croatian: на́равно — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Serbo-Croatian: náravno — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Spanish: en toda regla — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Spanish: sin duda — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Spanish: adelante — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Swedish: för all del — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Turkish: kesinlikle — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Turkish: her hâlükârda — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Turkish: ne olursa olsun — emphatically yes, definitely
  • Spanish: mediante todos los medios — literally