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

• 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

Although many antifa chapters have the hallmarks of a criminal enterprise, antifa’s anonymous and seemingly amorphous nature raises questions regarding whether a diffuse, purportedly leaderless movement can be criminally charged under federal racketeering and conspiracy law. —Mia Cathell, The Washington Examiner, 12 Aug. 2025

The Athletic polled six GMs, six assistant GMs, six former GMs, five other anonymous NFL executives, eight head coaches, and 19 other coaches, totaling 50 voters in a position of power across the league. —Justin Grasso, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Aug. 2025

An anonymous tipster called police to say the bandits were trying to sell their loot less than a mile away, and gave the cops Hussein’s Instagram handle, according to court filings. —John Annese, New York Daily News, 12 Aug. 2025

Immediate Action Steps for Business Leaders Week 1 – Assessment: Conduct an anonymous survey about current employee AI usage and productivity frustrations. —Steven Wolfe Pereira, Forbes.com, 11 Aug. 2025

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