all-sports

The compound adjective "all-sports" is a modern English formation built from two native elements. "All" is a fundamental Germanic word with Proto-Indo-European roots, retaining its core meaning of completeness. "Sports" has a more complex journey, originating from the idea of "carrying away" from amusement, which narrowed to mean physical contests and games. The logic of the compound is transparently literal: "pertaining to the whole category of sports," creating a term often used in broadcasting or marketing to denote comprehensive coverage or involvement across athletic disciplines.

Structure: all (whole) + sports (athletic activities) - all: From Old English eall, meaning "whole, entire, every." It functions as a combining form indicating totality or inclusiveness. - sports: From the verb disport, via Old French desporter ("to divert, amuse"), ultimately from Latin dis- ("apart") + portare ("to carry"). In this compound, it functions as the core noun meaning "athletic games or pastimes."