If you want to talk about your favorite thing, you might not know whether to say all-time favorite or all times favorite.
The correct phrase is all-time favorite.
“All-time favorite” is a phrase you would use to talk about the thing you love most, more than anything else you know.
Why “All-Time Favorite” is the Correct Usage?
In English, when you’re forming compound adjectives (adjectives made up of more than one word) that come before a noun, you typically use a hyphen.
And this is true of the word “all-time,” which you can use as a compound adjective. It changes the word “favorite.” According to grammatical rules, you should use singular forms for such compounds. So, “time” should not be plural.
The phrase “all-time favorite” is the correct form. Alternatively, all times favorite is considered grammatically incorrect.
Using “all-time favorite” in Different Situations
Here are five examples demonstrating the correct usage of “all-time favorite”:
- Movie: “The Godfather” is her all-time favorite movie for its compelling storytelling.
- Book: “To Kill a Mockingbird” holds its place as their all-time favorite book.
- Song: His all-time favorite song is “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen.
- Holiday: Thanksgiving is her all-time favorite holiday due to the family gatherings.
- Food: They consider pizza to be their all-time favorite food because of its versatility.
On the other hand, here are some examples of using “all times favorite,” which is incorrect grammar:
- Incorrect: “Michael Jordan is my all times favorite athlete.”
- Incorrect: She describes Paris as her all times favorite city to visit.
- Incorrect: They called “Friends” their all times favorite TV show.
American vs British English: Usage of All Time Favorite
When you’re discussing the phrase “all time favorite”, it’s crucial for you to know that American and British English spell some words differently.
The phrase at hand depends on whether you use the American ‘favorite’ or the British ‘favourite’. This difference is similar to how you might spell ‘color’ versus ‘colour’, ‘flavor’ versus ‘flavour’, ‘honor’ versus ‘honour’, and ‘rumor’ versus ‘rumour’.
Regardless of these spelling variations, the meaning stays the same in both dialects of English.
Alternative Ways to Say “All Time Favorite”
There are several synonyms and phrases you can use to effectively convey the same meaning as “all time favorite.” You can seamlessly integrate these alternatives into your speech or writing to add variety.
Here is a list of alternatives:
- Number one pick
- Top of the list
- Go-to choice
- Favorite of all
- Perennial favorite
- Unequivocal favorite
Each phrase you use stays true to the main idea that the subject is more important than anything else in its category.
If you want to sound casual, you can say things like “number one pick” or “top of the list” to show that the subject is very important to you. The phrase “go-to choice” means something you can trust and strongly prefer over other options.
“Perennial favorite” is another word you can use. Something perennial means it will last forever. This means the same thing as “all-time favorite.”
In the same way, “unequivocal favorite” is another phrase that can be used to say that there is no doubt about the choice, making the subject a clear favorite.
