Is "Hi alls" used in English?

Question

Some my friends usually use "Hi alls!" for greeting a group of people.

I don't think it's right, we cannot use "all" with "s" suffix.

We are from Vietnam and are not native English speakers. Is this right in native English standard?

Please state the nationality of your friends, thanks. This could be a regional thing. — Mari-Lou A, Commented Aug 10, 2017 at 4:51
@Mari-LouA: We are from Vietnam and are not native English speaker. Is this right in native English standard? — An Tran T., Commented Aug 10, 2017 at 5:36
The expression Y'all with variations is the archetypal address for You all of the American South. Even Shalom, Y'all. In Brooklyn, we said Youz. English otherwise has no way to differentiate the singular you from the plural. — Yosef Baskin, Commented Aug 10, 2017 at 5:38
Short answer, no. But maybe in some dialects across the US, it might be heard and used. My first thought was also directed to Y'all and its spelling variants and use. In fact, there is a question on EL&U asking about its plural form When is “all y'allses” used? — Mari-Lou A, Commented Aug 10, 2017 at 5:54
The pronoun "all" incorporates a plural meaning. Just saying "Hi all" or "Hello all" or Good morning all! is sufficient, there is no need to add the suffix "s". In emails it's common to address the recipients as "all" as in Dear all. The "s' in "alls" is redundant. — Mari-Lou A, Commented Aug 10, 2017 at 6:15

Ayush Agrawal · Accepted Answer · 2017-08-11 04:41:34Z

-1

Agreed, 'Hi alls' doesn't sound great to my ears. But, you can have an 's' after the word all, albiet with an apostrophe('). For example,

'All's well that ends well'

Here, the 's' doesn't try to make it plural, but is a contraction of "all" and "is". So it literally translates to

'All is well that ends well'

answered Aug 10, 2017 at 3:30

Ayush Agrawal

93 bronze badges

All's in your example is a contraction of "all" and "is". Not plural. The "alls" in the OP's example "Hi, alls" is plural in meaning.
– Mari-Lou A
Commented Aug 10, 2017 at 4:49
@Mari-LouA So does that mean "Hi Alls" is correct? or even alls for that matter.
– Ayush Agrawal
Commented Aug 11, 2017 at 4:42
Please read the comments underneath the author's post. Everything you need to know is "all" there. :)
– Mari-Lou A
Commented Aug 11, 2017 at 4:58
Ah sorry should've done that earlier. Thank you @Mari-LouA
– Ayush Agrawal
Commented Aug 11, 2017 at 5:03

Add a comment |

1 Answer 1