Word.ws English Dictionary

on all counts

on all counts prepositional phrase: used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see all, count.

Prepositional phrase

  1. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see all, count.
    • “Guilty, on all counts,” the foreman of the jury read.2013, Gary Mercer, Guilty On All Counts
  2. In every possible way or in every case.
    • Marketwise, they move with interest rates, and hence provide the maximum safety on all counts.1965, Standard & Poor's Earnings and Ratings Bond Guide, page 2
    • Moreover, the Duke, Lear, and Prospero are all put in positions where they must consider the choice between revenge and mercy; and on all counts the choice is for mercy.1972, Shakespeare studies - Volume 6, page 182

Origin of on all counts

A generalization of the legal phrase for when a defendant is found guilty or innocent on every count (charge) in a court case.

Questions about on all counts

What does on all counts mean?
On all counts means used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see all, count.
What part of speech is on all counts?
On all counts is a prepositional phrase.

Words near on all counts in the dictionary

  1. on acid
  2. on again off again
  3. on again, off again
  4. on air
  5. on alert
  6. on all counts
  7. on all fours
  8. on all hands
  9. on all-fours
  10. on an empty stomach
  11. on an equal footing

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: on all counts (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Cite this entry: “on all counts.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/on_all_counts. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.