anything
Americanpronoun
noun
adverb
idioms
-
anything goes, any type of conduct, dress, speech, etc., is considered acceptable or valid or is likely to be encountered and tolerated.
That resort is a place where anything goes!
-
anything but, in no degree or respect; not in the least.
The plans were anything but definite.
pronoun
noun
adverb
-
in any way
he wasn't anything like his father
-
by no means; not in the least
she was anything but happy
-
(intensifier; usually euphemistic)
he ran like anything
Etymology
Origin of anything
before 900; Middle English ani thing, eni thing, Old English ǣnig thing. See any, thing 1
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.
It would mean overriding the officials who had signaled comfort with the Fed’s current stance, diminishing the value of anything they say next time.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
The Dodgers do not have to do anything.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
"It's nice knowing that if anything were to happen, I would just go back to how life was before," she says.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
"May God help the army, it doesn't have the authority to do anything," he told AFP.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
And once I start down that rabbit hole, there’s no space for anything else in my brain.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
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.
