How to Say "Everything" in German

alles

/ˈaləs/neuter

The English phrase everything is translated into German as alles.

Meaning: all the things (pron)

Which one should you use?

While alles means everything (all things), the word alle means all or everyone and is used when referring to people.

The word alles functions as a singular neuter pronoun in German.

/ˈaləs/

English speakers often mistakenly use alle instead of alles when they mean everything (all things) rather than all (people).

In a sarcastic tone, saying ja, alles super! often means the exact opposite, indicating that everything is actually going terribly.
In Germany, the phrase alles gut is often used as a versatile response meaning 'it is all good' or 'no worries', even when something has actually gone slightly wrong.
The word alles is closely related to the Gothic word allata, showing that the concept of 'everything' has remained linguistically similar for nearly two millennia.

Er gab alles zu.
He admitted everything.
This sentence shows how to use alles to describe admitting everything.
Tatoeba #10309264 by Pfirsichbaeumchen, translation #10244150 by Hybrid
Alles lief gut ab.
Everything went well.
This sentence uses alles to describe how everything went well.
Tatoeba #442428 by Espi, translation #530030 by wma
Alles sah gut aus.
Everything looked nice.
This sentence uses alles to describe how everything looked nice.
Tatoeba #12503939 by mayabe, translation #51775 by CK
2977 more sentences on Tatoeba

Felix and Hannah are cleaning up after a small party.

Hannah

Ist alles fertig?
Is everything finished?
Felix

Ja, ich habe alles aufgeräumt.
Yes, I tidied everything up.
Hannah

Du hast wirklich alles gemacht, Felix.
You really did everything, Felix.
Felix

Kein Problem, Hannah.
No problem, Hannah.

Sources

Wiktionary, “everything” translations and entries alles, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
Word origins: Wiktionary entries alles, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.

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