Indefinite Pronouns
B1 · IntermediatePronounsSomeone, anything, no one, everything — these words stand in for a person or thing you're not naming specifically. Learn the pattern behind the whole family, how they team up with the verb, and one rule that trips up a lot of learners: in English, "nobody" and "nothing" are already negative on their own.
What you'll learn
- The someone/anyone/no one/everyone family (people) and something/anything/nothing/everything family (things)
- Why these words take a singular verb: "Everyone is here," not "Everyone are here"
- Singular "they" for referring back to someone, anyone, or everyone
- Why "Nobody knows" and "Nothing happened" don't take a second negative word
The core idea
An indefinite pronoun stands in for a person, thing, or amount you're not naming specifically — you don't know who, don't know what, or it just doesn't matter. "Someone called while you were out" doesn't tell you who called; "I need something to drink" doesn't say exactly what.
This lesson focuses on eight of the most common ones: someone, anyone, no one, everyone (for people) and something, anything, nothing, everything (for things).
The word family: some-, any-, no-, every-
Notice the pattern: each word is built from a prefix that sets the meaning, plus -one (a person) or -thing (a thing). Some- is used in ordinary positive statements and offers ("Someone is waiting for you," "Would you like something to eat?"). Any- shows up in questions and negative statements ("Did anyone call?" "I don't have anything to add"). No- already means "not one" all by itself ("No one answered," "Nothing happened"). Every- means the whole group, with no exceptions ("Everyone agreed," "Everything is ready").
One spelling note: everyone, everything, someone, something, anyone, and anything are single words — but no one is written as two words. "Noone" isn't standard spelling.
Singular verb, even for a whole group
Even though everyone and everything can mean a large group, they act like a single, singular subject in the sentence: "Everyone is here." "Everything looks great." The verb matches the pronoun (singular), not the number of people it might include.
This holds for the whole family: someone/anyone/no one/everyone and something/anything/nothing/everything all pair with a singular verb — is, has, knows, works — not are, have, know, work.
Referring back with "they"
Once you've used someone, anyone, no one, or everyone, you'll often need to refer back to that person again a moment later — and English normally uses "they/their/them" for that, since the pronoun didn't specify gender in the first place: "Someone left their umbrella by the door," "If anyone calls, tell them I'll be back at three."
This is completely standard, everyday usage — not a special exception. The verb right next to someone/anyone/no one/everyone stays singular ("Someone has left..."), while a later "they" refers back to that same person.
"Nobody" and "nothing" are already negative
No one, nobody, and nothing already carry the negative meaning by themselves. Standard English doesn't add a second negative word to the same idea: "Nobody knows the answer" and "Nothing happened" are already complete, correct negative sentences.
Sentences like "I don't know nothing" or "Nobody doesn't know" double up the negative. Some casual, dialectal speech uses a doubled negative for emphasis, but it is not standard English and isn't accepted in writing, school, or professional contexts. When a verb is already negative (don't, doesn't, didn't, isn't), pair it with an any- word instead of a no- word: "I don't know anything about it," not "I don't know nothing about it."
Real English
Watch out
The verb is already negative ("don't"), so pair it with any-, not no-. Adding a second negative word doubles the negation instead of just meaning "none."
Everyone, everything, someone, and the rest of the family always take a singular verb, even when they refer to a whole group.
For a flat rule that applies to everybody, switch the pronoun to no one instead of putting can't next to anyone — English states the negative once, on the pronoun.
Unlike everyone and someone, no one is spelled as two separate words in standard English.
Real life — Closing up the café
"Did anyone leave a jacket on the patio?" "I don't think so — everything on the tables is ours." "Good, because no one's come back for anything in the last hour. Let's lock up."
Practice
Exercise 1 · Choose the correct sentence
Which sentence uses the correct verb form?
Exercise 2 · Choose the correct sentence
Which sentence correctly refers back to "someone" without assuming gender?
Exercise 3 · Choose the correct sentence
Which sentence is correct?
Exercise 4 · Choose the correct sentence
You're checking whether all the food for tonight's dinner has arrived. Which sentence fits?
Exercise 5 · Choose the correct sentence
Which sentence is correct?
Exercise 6 · Sort into groups
0 / 8 sorted
Exercise 7 · Build the sentence
Exercise 8 · Build the sentence
Exercise 9 · Complete the sentence
Complete the sentence with the negative person-word: "I called the office twice, but ___ answered."
Exercise 10 · Complete the sentence
Complete the sentence: "The email said ___ needs to bring a laptop for the training."
Exercise 11 · Complete the sentence
Complete the sentence: "I checked the fridge, but there's ___ left for lunch."
Exercise 12 · Fix the mistake
Fix the mistake and type the corrected sentence: "I don't know nothing about the delay."
Exercise 13 · Fix the mistake
Fix the mistake and type the corrected sentence: "Nobody doesn't know the new schedule."
Exercise 14 · Fix the mistake
Fix the mistake and type the corrected sentence: "Everyone in the waiting room are checking their phones."
Exercise 15 · Real-life scenario
You're filling out a lost-and-found form at the airport. No name was given for the bag's owner. Which sentence is correct?
Exercise 16 · Real-life scenario
You're texting your coworkers to ask for help. Complete: "Does ___ want to cover my shift tomorrow?"
Quick challenge
Five mixed questions to check what stuck.
Question 1 / 5
Score: 0/0
Which sentence is correct?
You learned
- Someone/anyone/no one/everyone (people) and something/anything/nothing/everything (things) all replace a person or thing you're not naming specifically.
- Some- is for positive statements and offers; any- is for questions and negative statements; no- is already negative; every- means the whole group.
- The whole family takes a singular verb, even everyone and everything: "Everyone is here," not "Everyone are here."
- Refer back to someone/anyone/everyone with "they/their/them" — standard, everyday usage, not an exception.
- "Nobody knows" and "Nothing happened" are already negative — don't add a second negative word ("I don't know anything," not "I don't know nothing").
Related grammar lessons
Relative Pronouns
Learn how who, which, that, and whose introduce a relative clause that adds more information about a noun — and master the trickiest rule in this topic: when the relative pronoun can be dropped, and when it absolutely cannot.
Reciprocal Pronouns: Each Other & One Another
Learn how each other and one another show mutual action between two or more people — plus their possessive forms, and why the old 'each other = 2, one another = 3+' rule is a myth.
Interrogative Pronouns
Learn who, whose, what, and which — the question words you use to ask about a person, an owner, a thing, or a choice — plus a brief, optional note on the more formal "whom."
Demonstrative Pronouns
Learn how to use this, that, these, and those as pronouns that stand on their own — near vs far, singular vs plural — plus the common mistakes to avoid.