someone
Americanpronoun
pronoun
Etymology
Origin of someone
Middle English word dating back to 1275–1325; see origin at some, one
Compare meaning
How does someone compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
The word someone refers a person or an individual, but not necessarily a specific one. If you're not hungry enough for dessert after lunch, you can ask the friends at your table, "Does someone want my ice cream sandwich?" It's a funny contradiction, but the noun someone can be used to mean "any unspecified person," but also "a very important person." So a child might say, "When I grow up, I want to be someone," meaning that they want to be well-known or famous, or just really good at something. Someone and somebody are synonyms, so you can use them interchangeably, although someone is slightly more formal.
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 sent all her atas to school along with her children because "if someone is illiterate, there are many things they won't understand."
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
In fact, it can be a sign of atypical anorexia, where someone has all the hallmarks of anorexia but is not underweight by body-mass index standards.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
"There will be an abundance of people who want to press buttons. It's getting someone who likes to work with their hands, other than computers," says business development manager Julie Topham.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
Take someone with a brain-cancer diagnosis who remains relatively symptom-free.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026
It was like someone had told the best language student to spend extra time with the worst language student.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
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.
