anonymity

C2 Topic:People & Society

US /ˌænəˈnɪmɪti/ UK /ænəˈnɪmɪti/ See IPA manual

noun Freq #20045

Meanings

1

noun
The state of being unknown by name; keeping your identity hidden.

The witness spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity.
2

noun
The state of being unnoticed or not famous.

After years of fame, the actor longed for the anonymity of small-town life.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the state of being unknown... namelessnessanonymousness

Word family

Derived forms cyberanonymityk-anonymitynonanonymity

Related forms anon anonymanonymalanonymizeanonymosityanonymous anonymously

Etymology

From Latin anonymus or its etymon Ancient Greek ἀνώνυμος (anṓnumos, “anonymous”) + -ity. Compare French anonymité.

anonymus Latin ἀνώνυμος Ancient Greek

View etymology graph ->

Topics

People & Society Word Formation & Derivatives

# anonymity

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** ˌænəˈnɪmɪti
**IPA (UK):** ænəˈnɪmɪti
**Frequency rank:** 20045

## Meanings
1. The state of being unknown by name; keeping your identity hidden.
2. The state of being unnoticed or not famous.

## Examples
- The witness spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity.
- After years of fame, the actor longed for the anonymity of small-town life.

## Derived Forms
- cyberanonymity
- k-anonymity
- nonanonymity

## Related Forms
- anon
- anonym
- anonymal
- anonymize
- anonymosity
- anonymous
- anonymously

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: anonymus
- Root: ἀνώνυμος

## Etymology
From Latin anonymus or its etymon Ancient Greek ἀνώνυμος (anṓnumos, “anonymous”) + -ity. Compare French anonymité.

## AI Etymology
Anonymity is from Latin anonymus or its etymon Ancient Greek ἀνώνυμος (anṓnumos, “anonymous”) + -ity. Compare French anonymité. The analysis is mainly morphological: the modern nominal form is built from the named base and affix. Important recorded forms include anonymus (Latin) and ἀνώνυμος (Ancient Greek). Current senses include the state of being unknown by name; keeping your identity hidden and the state of being unnoticed or not famous. The wider family includes derived forms such as cyberanonymity, k-anonymity, and nonanonymity; related words such as anon, anonym, anonymal, and anonymize.

## Topics
- People & Society
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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