[Grammar] all or everybody

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tyrp

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Hello,
Is it correct to say 'Hello all' or 'Hello everybody'? The same concerns 'All are present. / Everybody is present'.
Some older grammar books say 'all' can be used alone in the sentence (He told me all. All like Betty.), though modern books (like Michael Swan's manuals) tend to claim it wrong and state that 'all' should either be used together with a noun or pronoun (He told me all the information. All of us like Betty. + He told me all ABOUT you) or be followed by a clause, where it can be employed with everything/-one/-body interchangeably (He told me all/everything he knew). What is the actual situation with these pronouns today?
Hope for your help only. I'll be very grateful for your advice.
 

Gillnetter

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Hello,
Is it correct to say 'Hello all' or 'Hello everybody'? The same concerns 'All are present. / Everybody is present'.
Some older grammar books say 'all' can be used alone in the sentence (He told me all. All like Betty.), though modern books (like Michael Swan's manuals) tend to claim it wrong and state that 'all' should either be used together with a noun or pronoun (He told me all the information. All of us like Betty. + He told me all ABOUT you) or be followed by a clause, where it can be employed with everything/-one/-body interchangeably (He told me all/everything he knew). What is the actual situation with these pronouns today?
Hope for your help only. I'll be very grateful for your advice.
While "Hello all" is used occasionally, "Hello everybody", or, "Hello everyone" is more common.
"He told me all" is fine. "All like Betty" presents a problem in that it has at least two meanings - all of the people like (adore, are attracted to, see her as a nice person) Betty, and, all of the people who are similar to Betty - "All like Betty step forward" (possibly meaning every person who is female, tall, blond, and has short hair). "He told me all" makes sense, but it doesn't convey much information. He told you all of what? If he was to tell you all he might spend the rest of his life giving you information. To make this work you would have to put a limit on what he told you - "He told me all about the fight last night". In short, attempt to analyze what you are going to say to see if it makes sense.
 

tyrp

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Thanks for your help. Do I get it right that there's nothing 'old-fashioned' about 'all' used alone, and the problem is with sense only? Does it actually mean that 'all' encompasses more info than 'everything' since 'He told me everything' is more concrete than 'He told me all' (which is limitless)?
 
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