be-all and end-all

English

Alternative forms

• be-all end-all, end-all be-all, end-all and be-all

Pronunciation

• Audio (AU)

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Noun

be-all and end-all (plural be-alls and end-alls)

1. (idiomatic) Something considered to be of the utmost importance; something essential or ultimate.

   He thought that cars were the be-all and end-all of life.

   Profit is the be-all and end-all of business.

   • a. 1606, William Shakespeare, Macbeth, act 1, scene 7, lines 4–5:

     That but this blow / Might be the be-all and the end-all!

   • 2014 September 23, A teacher, “Choosing a primary school: a teacher's guide for parents”, in The Guardian‎^[1]:

     The compulsory tests in reading, writing and maths at the end of years 2 and 6 are often mistakenly seen as the be-all and end-all of a child's chances in life, and the quality of their school.

Related terms

• end in itself

Translations

Something considered to be of the utmost importance

• Czech: první a poslední
• Finnish: kaikki kaikessa
• French: raison d’être (fr) f
• German: A und O (de) n, Wichtigste n, Daseinsgrund (de) m, Maß aller Dinge n; negative: das ist auch nicht alles
• Greek:

  Ancient Greek: ἀρχὴ καὶ τέλος (arkhḕ kaì télos)

• Portuguese: razão de ser (pt) f

See also

• raison d'être

Anagrams

• end-all and be-all