anybody
Americanpronoun
noun
idioms
pronoun
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any person; anyone
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(usually used with a negative or a question) a person of any importance
he isn't anybody in this town
noun
Spelling
The pronoun anybody is always written as one word: Is anybody home? There isn't anybody in the office. The two-word noun phrase any body means “any group” ( Any body of students will include a few dissidents ) or “any physical body” ( The search continued for a week despite the failure to find any body ). If the word a can be substituted for any without seriously affecting the meaning, the two-word noun phrase is called for: a body of students; failure to find a body. If the substitution cannot be made, the spelling is anybody. Anybody is less formal than anyone. See also anyone.
Usage
See each, they ( def. ).
Etymology
Origin of anybody
First recorded in 1250–1300, anybody is from Middle English ani bodi. See any, body
Compare meaning
How does anybody compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
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.
"These are little octopuses that live in the deep sea, and hardly anybody on Earth has ever gotten to see them. I just feel lucky that I got to work with them," says Voight.
From Science Daily • May 25, 2026
At this stage it is difficult to see anybody beating Sinner at Roland Garros.
From BBC • May 23, 2026
“I don’t think anybody credible can possibly say the Fed should be cutting rates,” said Lavorgna, who served until earlier this year as a senior adviser to Bessent, in an interview.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 22, 2026
It was a $40-million movie, and they were really sort of out there without anybody really looking at it.
From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2026
“Has anything happened with you and anybody else?” he says to my back.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
