nobody
Americanpronoun
noun
pronoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of nobody
First recorded 1300–50; Middle English; see origin at no 2, body
Compare meaning
How does nobody compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Use the word nobody to mean "no one," or for someone who's completely unimportant or insignificant. It's not nice to call someone a nobody; everyone wants to be a somebody. If nobody is at home, you can ring the doorbell for an hour and get no response, and if nobody in your family likes pizza, there's no reason to order it for dinner. Since nobody means "no person," it's come to also have the meaning "insignificant person." It's hard not to feel like a nobody when your sister becomes famous after starring in a popular movie.
Vocabulary lists containing nobody
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.
See Examples For:
"It's kind of the hidden jewel in the building that nobody knew about," said Carlos Cardoso, partner at Beyer Blinder Belle.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
But that can happen any place on any day, and nobody has to mess up an arid ecosystem to enjoy it.
From Salon ● Jul. 24, 2026
So nobody should be surprised by this split.
From Slate ● Jul. 24, 2026
"We had already packed suitcases just in case, but they gave us only two minutes and carefully checked that nobody was still inside the house," she said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026
Unseen, unheralded; and he might die yet, and nobody would know: but even if no witnesses ever told it, it was still true.
From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell
You can think, within two seconds, of stories of nobodies who became somebodies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026
"We are very proud of this! We are nobodies, we have no money, nothing!"
From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2025
A small group of nobodies on TikTok saying dumb shit is not a viral trend that necessitates mass hysteria in response.
From Slate ● Nov. 16, 2023
For the second year in a row, there’s no Power Five nonconference opponent, just two relative nobodies plus a FCS gimme in North Carolina Central.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2023
It became very obvious very quickly that even on a team of nobodies with no sporting talent and often even less enthusiasm, no one was keen to pick me.
From "Ugly" by Robert Hoge
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.
