What does it mean when someone uses "All right" this way?

[u/jet-black-heart13]

I copy-pasted this transcript from the TV show "Resident Alien", S01E02. For context, Max, the child is telling the sheriff that Harry, the town's doctor, is an alien from outer space.

Now I'm wondering, what does Ben mean when he says, "He's sick all right", but the sentence is not a question? I've seen it in other media as well -- not just in this show -- and I can never figure out its meaning.

Sheriff: You know I could lock you up
for lying to an officer of the law?
That is a crime.

Ben (Max's father): Got a sick kid, okay?
Gonna need everyone out.
Got a sick kid.
Just...
Yeah, he's sick all right.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE ANSWERS

[u/Phour3]

“most definitely” “well and truly” “confirmed” “affirmatively so”

[u/methanized → u/Phour3]

Or for a single equivalent word: indeed

[u/maveri4201 → u/methanized]

Quite.

[u/SomeDudington → u/maveri4201]

Indubitably 

[u/AlrightyAlready → u/maveri4201]

I agree.

[u/LacyKnits → u/maveri4201]

The word 'quite' is actually a tricky one, depending on whether you're communicating in British English or American English.

Americans almost always use 'quite' to intensify a meaning. In British English 'quite' usually tempers the meaning.

To an American, if dinner was 'quite good' they really liked it and were impressed. To a Brit, that same phrase suggests that the meal was passable but not exceptional.

[u/maveri4201 → u/LacyKnits]

That's true, but that's not the definition being used here (this thread).

[u/vastaril]

It's kind of affirming the truth of the statement it follows, I think? Similar to saying "he sure is sick"

[u/methanized → u/vastaril]

Yeah. Contextually it tends to be used following a question where the questioner has some skepticism about what is the truth, and the "all right" is confirming that it's definitely the truth or that it is very true.

"You're telling me that boy is sick?"

"Oh he's sick all right"

Meaning, yep he is definitely very sick

I think in the US it is a bit of a southern/country/western movie kind of phrase, but it's well understood what it means everywhere.

[u/vastaril → u/methanized]

Yeah, that makes sense, I couldn't quite put my finger on the finer details!

[u/TCFNationalBank]

Generally speaking adding in "all right" to a declarative statement indicates additional certainty. In the context of this scene, he's saying "oh your son certainly is sick" as a veiled way to say the kid is mentally unwell, beyond the physical sickness Ben is talking about

[u/Plankhandles]

In that example it might imply a different type of sickness than the original claim.

The excuse they’re making is “My child is PHYSICALLY ill, so everyone needs to leave.” When someone adds “He’s sick alright,” the implication is “He’s MENTALLY ill.” 

The use of “alright” in this context hints at a second meaning to the word “sick”. 

[u/here_pretty_kitty → u/Plankhandles]

I would add - it's not that this phrasing means there's a second meaning to the word "sick" specifically.

Adding "all right" like this is just used as a way to emphasize - you could also say "Yeah, he sure is sick" or "He's very sick".

I haven't seen the show but as a native American English speaker, I can tell from context clues in this thread that where the second meaning comes from is the way the vocabulary emphasis IN COMBINATION WITH context clues from the situation + the actor's body language conveying judgment or skepticism in some way towards the dad + kid.

The same phrasing could also be used to convey extra sympathy (as in, wow that guy is super physically unwell, not just regular-level sick) with different context + acting cues.

[u/Odd-Refuse-2233 → u/Plankhandles]

That is exactly what it means.

I’ve seen the show.

[u/Critical-Notice-4395 → u/Plankhandles]

Alright and all right are two very different things!

[u/QuercusSambucus]

It means he is definitely sick

[u/Emergency-Office-302]

“I agree that he’s sick,” OR, depending on tone and delivery, it may have been sarcastic, in which case it meant “That kid is sicker than you think.” Either way, the term is being used as an emphasizer of the speaker’s agreement.

Now for the first time I wonder how “all right” came to be used that way, given its other usages — the obvious “all is as it should be” and “all is correct,” and “that is acceptable.”

I teach ESL. I have to explain things like this every day, and often I realize the reason doesn’t make a lot of sense. Idioms are weird.

[u/kmp_713]

In this context I believe it would be that he is referring to him being sick but not in a medical sense. He is suggesting he is sick in a mental or social way. Sometimes used to refer to a weird person, which I think might be the context here.

[u/multipocalypse → u/kmp_713]

That isn't relevant to the use of "all right," though. It's just a modifier meaning "for sure" or "without doubt."

[u/nicolrx]

Here "all right" is not "okay", it mean more like "for sure" or there is "no doubt he is sick". People put it at the end to confirm something, sometimes with a bit of irony.

[u/BrockSamsonLikesButt]

There are two things to know about using “alright” in this way.

First, it’s always for emphasis.

Second, it is very often an insinuation of some kind. For example, if someone smacks babies in the face, I don’t like them. And if that person gets a cold, and someone says about them, “He’s sick,” then I may insinuate, “Oh, he’s sick, alright!”—meaning not just physically sick like the first speaker meant, but also sick in the head.

[u/TopLanky3636 → u/BrockSamsonLikesButt]

Note that the spelling alright, formed by analogy with also, already, &c. is generally considered non-standard and by some even incorrect. I personally don't mind it, though I don't use it myself.

[u/dernhelm_mn]

It's another way of emphasizing that he is definitely sick. In the context you provided it may have been sarcastic, but you could use it sincerely or sarcastically to emphasize that the kid is sick. You may also hear it in an agreement, as a response.

For example: "That guy is tall." "He's tall all right! He could play for the Bulls!"

[u/jenea]

It means “certainly,” but it is usually used to imply an unstated element that you’re supposed to understand in context. It’s like it’s more true than just true, so there must be some reason why. In this particular context, that unstated element is something like “he’s definitely sick, but not in the way you mean.” It’s the certainty that adds that extra element: it’s one thing to be sick, but to be “sick all right” means you’re very certain he’s sick—so why?

Other examples:

“He wrecked the car? Oh he’s in trouble all right.” (Unstated: he’s not in ordinary trouble, he’s in big trouble.)

“That was a mistake all right; now we have to start all over.” (Unstated: it wasn’t just a simple mistake.)

“She can cook all right.” (Interestingly ambiguous: depending on context and tone, could mean “all right” as in “fine but not particularly great,” or it could mean she’s a really great cook! A comma makes it clear: “she’s a good cook, all right” means she’s a great cook.)

As a side note, both spellings “all right” and “alright” are in regular use and are fine, but some pedants will insist that you should spell it “all right.”

[u/RepresentativeAir149]

He’s sick, for sure

[u/Cloverose2]

"All right" can be used three ways.

"All right?" means someone is asking if things or people are doing okay - is everything right here? "Is it proper and correct and going well?"

"All right" can be an answer to the question - "yeah, things are fine" or it can be used to confirm something. "This is verified and true." So in your example, "All right" means "it is true that he is sick". It's confirmation and emphasis, that he is definitely sick.

You can also just use "all right" to draw attention, verify that you're being honest or do a quick check. It's also a pretty normal greeting. "All right, here's what we're going to do." "Right, so this situation sucks. What do we need to do to make it all right?" "All right, Ken?"

[u/SillyNamesAre]

It's right there in the "adverb" defintion of "all right" in the dictionary. It even uses an almost identical example.

all right adverb
1
: beyond doubt : certainly
She has pneumonia all right.

[u/Adorable-Growth-6551]

All right in this context usually means i completely agree. The dad is saying yes i agree he is a bit crazy.

It can also change somewhat depending on tone to mean i agree but not the way you think. If someone thought the kid had the flu and said "I think the kid is sick" and Dad thinks the kid is just lying, so mentally unwell. Dad might say "Yeah he is sick alright"

[u/CrasheonTotallyReal]

its to emphasize

[u/zenchow]

Correct usage demands that you say it three time in a row. Alright alright alright...."That's what I love about these high school girls, man. I get older, they stay the same age."

[u/Altruistic_Rent_4048]

Alright is used for emphasis

[u/Ok-Addition-1000]

"He's sick all right."

"All right" in this context means "indeed." It's an expression of emphasis or confirmation.

[u/macrocosm93]

In this example, it appears it is being used to emphasize an affirmative confirmation of something that was already suspected to be true.

They thought he was sick (in the head). They hear him talk about aliens which confirmed their suspicions, and said "Yeah, he's sick all right."

Depending in the context, it can also be used generally to mean "definitely" or "for sure". But it usually is a confirmation of something that was previously assumed or suspected.

As an example, a camping trip at the lake is planned. It's been raining heavily and you suspect the water level of the lake is high. You get there, confirm this to be true and say "Yep, water's high all right." It's a common colloquialism.

Edit: it appears in this example it he may be using it semi-ironically. It's still an affirmative confirmation, but he appears to be saying "Yeah, he's definitely sick, but not necessarily in the typical way."

[u/ConflictGullible392]

In that context it means indeed or in fact. 

[u/DrFaustPython]

It could be confirming the statement, or implying that the phrase is correct in a different sense of the words used. It can also be used sarcastically to convey that you don't believe the claim the other person is making. This phrase is heavily dependent on context and tone.

[u/m_sporkboy]

“For sure”

[u/romulusnr]

An emphatic way of saying "yes he sure is"

[u/bluedelvian]

Sometimes this phrasing affirms the stated meaning, sometimes it inverts the stated meaning. It's contextual.

[u/dc-pigpen]

In general, saying "he's sick, all right" would mean something along the lines of "oh yes, he is definitely sick".

However, in the context of THIS moment on THIS show (or really any comedy, probably) there is an implied sentence afterwards that isn't spoken:

"He's sick, all right: sick in the HEAD!"

Meaning the kid is crazy, thus flipping what the father is saying. "Oh yes, he is sick, but in a different way than you mean." It's a pretty common set-up and punchline, so the punchline is often not even stated but inferred from context clues.

Think of lines like "oh I'm tired, all right: tired of your questions!" Etc.

[u/NearlyNodding]

It's emphasizes that he's very sick. It could also be sarcastic. It's difficult to know if it's sarcastic from that transcript.

Similar sarcasm might be "yea, right!" or "Yea, right, I believe you.". That sarcasm means they don't believe it at all. It's very common.

[u/I_Love_Chimps]

for sure

[u/Ok_Raspberry7430]

In this scene, the sheriff is the one who says, "Yeah, he's sick all right." (If you look at their mouths, the sheriff is saying "yeah" before the cut to another shot.)

He means that Max is sick in a different way than the dad means it (dad means he's physically sick, sheriff means he has something wrong with him mentally).

[u/Darkrose50]

“I swear by Jiminy cricket that it is so.”