any

1 of 3

adjective

1
: one or some indiscriminately of whatever kind:
a
: one or another taken at random
Ask any man you meet.
b
: every
used to indicate one selected without restriction
Any child would know that.
2
: one, some, or all indiscriminately of whatever quantity:
a
: one or more
used to indicate an undetermined number or amount
Do you have any money?
b
: all
used to indicate a maximum or whole
He needs any help he can get.
c
: a or some without reference to quantity or extent
I'd be grateful for any favor at all.
3
a
: unmeasured or unlimited in amount, number, or extent
any quantity you desire
b
: appreciably large or extended
could not endure it any length of time

any

2 of 3

pronoun

singular or plural in construction
1
: any person or persons : anyone
I don't know any of them.
2
a
: any thing or things
The movie's opening scene is as powerful as any I've seen.
b
: any part, quantity, or number
You haven't eaten any of your salad.

any

3 of 3

adverb

: to any extent or degree : at all
was never any good
No, it doesn't help me any.

Examples of any in a Sentence

Adjective any person who comes in the store today is eligible for the discount Adverb The food there is never any good. He won't be any happier there than he was here. I could not walk any farther. I can't eat any more pizza.
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
No one, after all, would be any the wiser: Hillary would coast to victory, so Democrats would continue running the government; FISA materials are highly classified, so they’d be kept under wraps. Andrew C. McCarthy, National Review, 23 Dec. 2017 In another Tuesday morning tweet, the president denied even knowing any the women who have spoken out. Benjamin Hart, Daily Intelligencer, 12 Dec. 2017 The first thing to do is remove any the things that attract the skunk. Joan Morris, The Mercury News, 20 Feb. 2017
Adverb
And in a head-to-head contest with Mr. Trump, Ms. Harris did not fare any better than Mr. Biden, losing by six percentage points. Ruth Igielnik, New York Times, 3 Mar. 2024 Those vehicles aren’t expected to come any sooner than 2025. Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 29 Feb. 2024 Finding care in your own language For Wong, her initial reluctance to continue counseling wasn’t about shame surrounding seeking mental health support, but rather the fear of reliving her most traumatic memories and uncertainty about whether a new therapist would be any different from the last. Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN, 10 Feb. 2024 Follow your parenting instincts If expert parenting advice is part of a multi-century trend that disempowers parents, does following our instincts work any better? Alison Escalante, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2024 Buildings near those areas can’t make noise any louder than 68 decibels when sound is measured from 100 feet away, which is roughly as loud as a normal conversation. Sam Kmack, The Arizona Republic, 25 Jan. 2024 Just last month, 27-year-old Robbie Scott similarly went viral on TikTok for insisting that Gen Z isn’t any less willing to work than generations before. Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 9 Feb. 2024 But Paul also seemed to hint that season 3 would bring the series to a close, suggesting that going any closer to contemporary musical theater might overcomplicate matters. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 18 Jan. 2024 But on Wednesday, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit declined to extend the stay any further, forcing Apple to stop selling the two Watch models in question, and setting the company on the long path toward a formal appeal. Michael Calore, WIRED, 17 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'any.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Old English ǣnig; akin to Old High German einag any, Old English ān one — more at one

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Pronoun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adverb

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of any was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near any

Cite this Entry

“Any.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/any. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

any

1 of 3 adjective
1
: one taken at random
any person you meet
2
: every sense 1
any child knows that
3
: of whatever number or amount
haven't any money

any

2 of 3 pronoun singular or plural
1
: any individuals
are any of you ready
2
: any number or amount
there isn't any left

any

3 of 3 adverb
: to the least amount or degree
can't get it any clearer
was never any good

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