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Everyman

American  
[ev-ree-man] / ˈɛv riˌmæn /

noun

  1. (italics) a 15th-century English morality play.

  2. (usually lowercase) an ordinary person; the typical or average person.


pronoun

  1. everybody; everyone.

Everyman British  
/ ˈɛvrɪˌmæn /

noun

  1. a medieval English morality play in which the central figure represents mankind, whose earthly destiny is dramatized from the Christian viewpoint

  2. (often not capital) the ordinary person; common man

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of Everyman

every + man

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Wood's adaptation of The Assassination of Margaret Thatcher has just opened at the Liverpool Everyman theatre.

From BBC • May 8, 2026

After a loss, the grieving Everyman finds no option but to keep living—he is, as one character says, “just waiting to see what we’ve been left here for.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 26, 2025

That colors Ben as the quintessential 2025 American Everyman – he’s non-judgmental, not entirely immune to disinformation, but also questions behavior and developments that might have been plausible a decade ago.

From Salon • Jan. 21, 2025

It’s a gripping drama about a flawed Everyman tempted to ignore his conscience — and it also meant a chance to work with Eastwood.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 3, 2024

Charles the Fifth had no less than nine hundred and ten volumes, so that his personal collection was about as big as the Everyman Library is today.

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White

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