all over the place

English

Pronunciation

• Audio (AU)

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Prepositional phrase

all over the place

1. (idiomatic) In multiple directions or locations, often haphazardly; everywhere.

   Synonym: scattershot

   They started firing all over the place.

   In Genoa there are stray cats all over the place.

   I've been looking for you all over the place.

   • 2004, Ruth Ozeki, All Over Creation, Penguin, →ISBN, page 267:

     I couldn't believe it. “This is insane! You don't know what you're getting into, Dad. We can't have lots of people swarming all over the place. You're supposed to be getting rest.”

2. (idiomatic) Inconsistent; lacking a clear pattern; with a large amount of variation.

   Synonym: at random

   I asked each person in turn, and their answers were all over the place.

   • 2023 December 1, Emma Sanders, “England 3-2 Netherlands”, in BBC Sport‎^[1]:

     England were all over the place for the majority of the opening 45 minutes as gaps broke in defence.

Synonyms

• (everywhere): all over hell's half acre; all over the shop; all over the gaff; all over the map; all over the board; here, there and everywhere; up hill and down dale

Translations

In multiple directions or locations, often haphazardly; everywhere.

• Esperanto: dise-mise
• Finnish: kaikkialle (fi), joka paikkaan, joka puolelle; kaikkialla (fi), joka paikassa, joka puolella; pitkin poikin (fi)
• French: dans tous les sens, en tous sens
• German: überall (de), an jeder Ecke, wo man auch geht und steht
• Italian: in ogni dove, per ogni dove, dappertutto (it)
• Russian: (direction) куда́ попа́ло (kudá popálo), куда́ ни по́падя (kudá ni pópadja), (location or direction) повсю́ду (ru) (povsjúdu), (location) везде́ (vezdé)
• Spanish: por doquier m, por doquiera (es) f
• Swedish: hej vilt (sv) (direction, colloquial), överallt (sv) (location)

Inconsistent; lacking a clear pattern; with a large amount of variation.

• Danish: please add this translation if you can
• Finnish: mitä sattuu, sekaisin (fi), ties mitä
• German: durcheinander (de), chaotisch (de), uneinheitlich (de), völlig durchmischt, verworren (de)
• Polish: od Sasa do Lasa (pl)
• Russian: где попа́ло (ru) (gde popálo), как попа́ло (kak popálo)
• Spanish: por doquier, por doquiera (es) f
• Swedish: spreta (sv) (verb), spretig (sv) (adjective)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Bislama: ^{(please verify)} olbaot
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} ovunque (it), ^{(please verify)} dovunque (it), ^{(please verify)} a dritta e a manca, ^{(please verify)} dappertutto (it)
• Portuguese: por todo lado
• Portuguese: em todo lugar, em todos os lugares
• Spanish: desperdigado (es), (sin) patrón (es)
• Thai: ^{(please verify)} ทุกทิศทุกทาง ไม่มีเป้าหมาย
• Turkish: ^{(please verify)} her tarafta, ^{(please verify)} her yerde
• Vurës: ^{(please verify)} atalē
• Walloon: ^{(please verify)} totavå (wa), ^{(please verify)} pattavå (wa)