anyone
Americanpronoun
pronoun
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any person; anybody
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(used with a negative or a question) a person of any importance
is he anyone in this town?
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(often preceded by just) any person at random; no matter who
Spelling
Anyone as a pronoun meaning “anybody” or “any person at all” is written as one word: Does anyone have the correct time? The two-word phrase any one means “any single member of a group of persons or things” and is often followed by of: Can any one of the members type? Any one of these books is exciting reading. Anyone is somewhat more formal than anybody.
Usage
See each, they ( def. ).
Etymology
Origin of anyone
First recorded in 1350–1400, anyone is from Middle English ani on. See any, one
Compare meaning
How does anyone 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.
She acknowledged that her progress over the years does not undo the mistakes and wrote that she is “not asking anyone to excuse it.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 4, 2026
"There's never been anyone like him," 79-year-old Pesach Levin told AFP.
From Barron's • Jun. 4, 2026
Everything was new to her: being put in a nice hotel and picked up by a car in the morning; wearing designer clothing; New York, where she didn’t know anyone.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 4, 2026
Was anyone skeptical that this was the story to drill down on?
From Slate • Jun. 4, 2026
I scanned the faces of those coming out, but neither Betsie nor Nollie was there, nor anyone else from Haarlem.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
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.
