Indefinite Pronouns

Form

Indefinite pronouns are built from some-, any-, no- and every- plus -one, -body, -thing or -where: someone, anybody, nothing, everywhere. The -one and -body forms mean exactly the same, with -body a little more casual (Someone called / Somebody called). Every one of them is grammatically singular, so it takes a singular verb even when it covers a whole group (Everyone is here; Nothing works). Each one stands in for a full noun phrase, which is why a verb can follow it directly (Everyone enjoys cooking) while every and all still need a noun after them (every student, all of my family).

When to Use It

• Use the some- forms in positive statements, when the person or thing exists but you cannot say which one, as in 'Somebody left a bag on the train.'
• Use the any- forms after a negative verb, as in 'I don't know anyone in this city.'
• Use the no- forms to make the sentence negative by themselves, which is why the verb stays positive, as in 'Nobody is in the office right now.'
• Use the every- forms for the whole group with no exceptions, still with a singular verb, as in 'Everybody had already read the report.'
• Use the any- forms in questions, offers and after if, where the person or thing may or may not turn up, as in 'If anybody calls while I'm out, please take a message.'
• Put the describing word after the pronoun, not before it, to say more about the person or place, as in 'There is something wrong with the printer' and 'We should go somewhere fun.'

Common Mistakes

• Pairing a no- form with a negative verb: write 'I don't have anything to say' or 'I have nothing to say', not 'I don't have nothing to say' — one negative per clause is enough.
• Giving an indefinite pronoun a plural verb: write 'Everyone needs a ticket' and 'Almost everything was damaged', not 'Everyone need' or 'everything were'.
• Keeping a some- form in a negative sentence: write 'I haven't seen anyone here before', not 'I haven't seen someone here before'.
• Treating everyone like every: write 'Everyone in my family enjoys cooking', not 'Every in my family enjoys cooking' — every needs a noun after it, everyone does not.
• Writing no one as one word: in American English it stays two words — write 'No one answered the phone', not 'Noone answered the phone', even though nobody, nothing and nowhere are each a single word.