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

Public Citizen obtained the ballroom’s funding agreement through a FOIA lawsuit and noted that the contract permits certain donors to remain anonymous. —Catherina Gioino, Fortune, 9 June 2026

Sometime after the misconduct was formally reported, an anonymous complaint was submitted to the oversight office claiming that the sheriff’s office was aware of Mejia’s conduct for more than year but failed to take action. —Robert Salonga, Mercury News, 8 June 2026

Anyone with information on the identity or location of the suspect or vehicle was asked to call the San Diego Unified School District Police Department at 619-291-7678 or the Crime Stoppers anonymous tip line at 888-580-8477. —City News Service, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 June 2026

Police urge anyone with information to call the homicide unit at 215-686-3334 or submit an anonymous tip at 215-686-TIPS. —Emily Shapiro, ABC News, 8 June 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