Meaning and Usage
"全く" (まったく) is an adverb used to emphasize the completeness or totality of a state or action. It often means "completely," "entirely," or "really." It can express strong negation, such as "not at all," or strong agreement, like "exactly."
Common Contexts
It is frequently used in everyday conversation to stress disbelief, lack of understanding, or to confirm agreement emphatically.
Collocations and Patterns
- 全く〜ない: used to express complete negation (e.g., 全く分からない - don't understand at all).
- 全くその通り: used to strongly agree with someone's statement.
- 全く信じられない: expresses strong disbelief.
Register and Nuance
"全く" is neutral and can be used in both formal and informal contexts. However, in very casual speech, people might shorten it to "まったく" with a slightly exasperated tone.
Common Mistake
Learners sometimes confuse "全く" with "全部" (ぜんぶ), which means "all" or "everything." Remember that "全く" is an adverb emphasizing degree or completeness, not a noun meaning "all."