anonymous

adjective

anon·​y·​mous ə-ˈnä-nə-məs 

1

: of unknown authorship or origin

an anonymous tip

2

: not named or identified

an anonymous author

They wish to remain anonymous.

3

: lacking individuality, distinction, or recognizability

the anonymous faces in the crowd

… the gray anonymous streets …

—William Styron

anonymousness noun

Synonyms of anonymous

• one
• unnamed

Examples of anonymous in a Sentence

The donor wishes to remain anonymous.

An anonymous buyer purchased the painting.

The college received an anonymous gift.

He made an anonymous phone call to the police.

The reporter got an anonymous tip.

His was just another anonymous face in the crowd.

Recent Examples on the Web

The suit, brought by 13 named and four anonymous researchers, is seeking to halt the process of searching applications and current grants for specific terms to determine if they should be rejected. — Anil Oza, STAT, 17 Sep. 2026

The Star reported this story over the course of several weeks following an anonymous Reddit thread that went viral detailing allegations about Jay Sanders’ misconduct and abuse at popular Kansas City-area bars Drastic Measures and Wild Child. — Katelyn Umholtz, Kansas City Star, 15 Sep. 2026

Authorities began investigating him again after an anonymous tip came in on March 19, shortly after his release from a juvenile detention facility. — Stephen Sorace, FOXNews.com, 15 Sep. 2026

Angine de Poitrine, the anonymous duo from Québec who are getting so popular that Google now festoons their search page with polka dots, made their late-night television debut on The Tonight Show on Monday. — Devon Ivie, Vulture, 15 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Late Latin anōnymos, anōnymus "lacking a name" (borrowed from Greek anṓnymos "lacking a name, unnamed, not well-known or remembered," from an- an- + -ōnymos, derivative in adjectival compounds of ónoma, Doric and Aeolic dialects ónyma "name") + -ous — more at name entry 1

First Known Use

1625, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for anonymous

• autonomous
• economise
• eponymous
• synonymous

Kids Definition

anonymous

adjective

anon·​y·​mous ə-ˈnän-ə-məs 

1

: not named or identified

the donor remained anonymous

2

: made or done by someone unknown

anonymous gifts

an anonymous poem

anonymously adverb

anonymousness noun

Etymology

from Latin anonymus "anonymous," from Greek anonymos (same meaning), from an-, a- "not, without" and onyma, onoma "name" — related to synonymous