What does everybody mean?
Everybody is an indefinite pronoun that refers to every person within a group or context, without exception. It functions grammatically as a singular noun phrase and therefore takes a singular verb, as in "Everybody is welcome here." Despite this formal singularity, it is very commonly paired with plural pronouns in everyday speech — "Everybody finished their meal" — reflecting a natural tendency to treat the word as conceptually plural. Slightly more conversational than its near-synonym everyone, everybody appears frequently in speech, announcements, and informal writing, though it is entirely acceptable in most written contexts too. The word combines the adjective every with the old English word body, which historically meant simply "person." It can also carry idiomatic weight in expressions such as "you can't please everybody." Versatile, warm in tone, and universally understood across the English-speaking world, everybody is one of the most frequently used collective references to people in modern English.
pronounAn indefinite pronoun meaning every person; each person in a group without exception.
- Every person; each person in a group or set, taken together and without exception.
- (With singular verb) any person in general; a hypothetical or typical person.
"Everybody at the meeting agreed to postpone the vote until Friday."
"Everybody was delighted when the news finally broke."
"You can't please everybody, no matter how hard you try."
Despite ending in "body," everybody has nothing to do with anatomy — it's just English reusing an old word for "person."
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of everybody
Everybody was formed in Middle English by combining the adjective every — itself rooted in Old English ǣfre (ever) combined with ǣlc (each) — with the noun body, which in older usage meant simply a person rather than specifically a physical form. It emerged alongside parallel compounds such as someone, anyone, and no one during the medieval period, when English began using body as a stand-in for person. Its close relatives everyone and everything follow the same pattern of pairing every with a generic noun. The word has remained stable in form and meaning since its emergence, spreading throughout the English-speaking world with little regional variation.
How everybody is actually used
Though grammatically singular, everybody is often followed by plural pronouns in informal speech (e.g., "Everybody brought their own lunch"). In formal writing, a singular pronoun ("his or her") is traditionally preferred, though singular "they" is now widely accepted. Everybody takes a singular verb.
Easily confused with everybody
Everyone and everybody mean the same thing, but everybody is slightly more informal in tone.
"Every body" (two words) means each individual physical body, while "everybody" refers to people collectively regardless of their bodies.