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Everyone, everybody, everything, everywhere

Everyone, everybody, everything and everywhere are indefinite pronouns.

We use them to refer to a total number of people, things and places. We write them as one word:

  • His name was Henry but everyone called him Harry.
  • All your clothes are clean. I washed everything yesterday.
  • The sand got everywhere, into eyes, hair, tents, cups of tea, camera lenses.

We use everyone, everybody, everything and everywhere with singular verbs:

  • Everybody knows the truth.
  • At night, with the lights shining on the water, everything looks different.
  • We couldn’t get a seat. Everywhere was so crowded.
warning

We don’t add s to everything to make it plural:

  • Children can buy everything they want.
  • Not: Children can buy everythings they want.

When we want to refer back to everyone or everybody and we don’t know if everyone is male or female, we use him or her and his or her. In informal styles, we use plural pronouns they, their and them:

  • Everybody has a team leader in charge of him or her.
  • Not everyone has his or her own desk.
  • Everyone has to climb to the top. When they get to the top, they have to blow their whistle. (more informal)
  • Has everyone got their coats? (more informal)

We can use everybody and everyone as the subject of imperative clauses. We use the base form of the verb:

  • Everybody stand up!

Everyone and everybody​

Everyone and everybody mean the same. Everyone is a little more formal than everybody. Everyone is used more in writing than everybody:

  • She knew everybody in the room.
  • Could everybody listen for a minute?
  • When everyone had gathered in the garden, Sergeant joined them and said, ‘Welcome, everyone!’
See also
  • Pronouns: indefinite (-body, -one, -thing, -where)

Typical error​

We write everyone as one word:

  • Twenty years ago everyone used an alarm clock that rang like a bell. (every person)
  • Not: Twenty years ago every one used an alarm clock …

We don’t normally use ‘all people’ to generalise about human beings:

  • Everyone has a right to basic freedoms.
See also
  • Every one or everyone?