> Other English exercises on the same topics: Frequent mistakes | Quantities [Change theme]
	> Similar tests: - Placement test beginners: Check your spelling - Past simple or present perfect - Placement test 1 - Countable or Uncountable? - Some / Any / Much / Many - Although / in spite of / despite - Some and any - Differences between Like and As
	> Double-click on words you don't understand

No one, nobody, nothing, nowhere

No one, nobody, nothing, nowhere are indefinite pronouns.

No one, nobody, nothing, nowhere are used to refer to an absence of people, things or places. They are used with a singular verb.

-Nobody ever visits the old lady. She's very lonely. 

-One normally has to wait for a long time. Nothing happens in a hurry here.

-There was nowhere we could have gone last Sunday.

The pronoun they is often used to refer back to (singular) no one or nobody when it is not known whether the person is male or female.

-No one remembers the names of the places they've visited.

No one or nobody?

No one and nobody mean the same. Nobody is a little less formal than no one. No one is used more than nobody in writing.

-We knew nobody at the ballroom competition.

-No one moved, no one said anything.

Nobody, no one, nothing, nowhere are stronger and more definite than not ... anybody/anyone/anything/anywhere.

-We did nothing (stronger than we didn't do anything).

-My friend told no one, not even his best friends. (stronger than he didn't tell anyone ... ).

Not + anyone/anything/anywhere is not used as the subject of a clause.

-Nothing will make me change the way I work.

Not: Not anything will make me change the way I work.

Nobody, no one, nothing, nowhere are not used after no, not, never or other words which have a negative meaning (hardly, seldom).

Anyone, anybody, anything, anywhere are used.

-They can't do anything to improve the current situation.

Not: They can't do nothing.

-The new student talks to hardly anyone.

Not: She talks to hardly no one.

I hope this helps.               

Twitter Share
English exercise "No one, nobody, nothing, nowhere" created by leopold with The test builder. [More lessons & exercises from leopold]
Click here to see the current stats of this English test

Please log in to save your progress.

1. no onenowhereI don't know knows what awaits us tomorrow or the day after.

2. nothingnobodyI don't know will ever admit that his own dog is a nuisance.

3. She is nothingnobodyI don't know like her sister in looks or manners.

4. The conversation is going nothingnowhereI don't know you don't want it to go.

5. nobodynothingI don't know knew where he had gone, or how he had escaped.

6. Is there nowherenothingI don't know that is decent to eat in this place?

7. no onenowhereI don't know can say I didn't give it my best shot.

8. He came out of nothingnowhereI don't know and grabbed me again.

9. He had been there and nothingnobodyI don't know could take that away from him.

10. I need Jane, but she's nowherenothingI don't know to be found this morning.