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Synonyms

anybody

American  
[en-ee-bod-ee, -buhd-ee] / ˈɛn iˌbɒd i, -ˌbʌd i /

pronoun

  1. any person.

noun

plural

anybodies

  1. a person of some importance.

    If you're anybody, you'll receive an invitation.

idioms

  1. anybody's guess, a matter of conjecture.

    It's anybody's guess why she quit.
anybody British  
/ ˈɛnɪˌbɒdɪ, -bədɪ /

pronoun

  1. any person; anyone

  2. (usually used with a negative or a question) a person of any importance

    he isn't anybody in this town
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. (often preceded by just) any person at random; no matter who

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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.

“I don’t think anybody has all the answers. But that’s no excuse not to begin the journey.”

From The Wall Street Journal

But remote works makes it hard to know anybody well enough.

From The Wall Street Journal

She said: "Its really important that the police are there and they're investigating and anybody who has any information that might be useful to the police, I urge them to get in touch with them."

From BBC

Celtic, as if anybody doesn't already know, are sitting third in the Premiership.

From BBC

The Greater Manchester mayor previously told the BBC he had put his name forward for the by-election as he believed he was "probably in a better position than anybody to fight back" against Labour's opponents.

From BBC

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.