all or none
/ˌɔl ɔr ˈnʌn/
adjective
- Involving a situation where either everything is gained or everything is lost, with no middle or partial result.
- Her approach to studying was all-or-none: she either aced the test or didn't bother at all.
- The team faced an all-or-none chance to win the championship in the final game.
- The company made an all-or-none bet on the new product, risking its entire budget.
- Describing a response or process that is either fully activated or not activated at all, with no partial state.
- In biology, a neuron fires in an all-or-none manner—it either sends a full signal or nothing.
- The alarm system has an all-or-none trigger: it either goes off completely or stays silent.
- Some digital circuits work on an all-or-none principle, switching between fully on and fully off.
Antonyms
noun
- A situation or choice that requires total commitment or acceptance, with no middle ground.
- For him, love was an all-or-none—he couldn't handle being just friends.
- The auction was an all-or-none: you had to buy the entire collection or nothing.
- The contract was an all-or-none, so we had to accept every term or walk away.