Any of Them Is or Are? (Singular or Plural)

Sometimes you’ll encounter alternate phrasings for an expression. These might make you doubt which one is correct and which one is incorrect, or if both are correct. Should you say “any of them is” or “any of them are”? This article will answer that question with ease.

Any of Them Is or Are?

“Any of them is” and “any of them are” are valid expressions. You use “any of them is” when talking about how any individual person in the group could be something. You use “any of them are” to talk about how all the members of the group could be something.

Any of Them Is or Are

The singular “any of them is” is used to single someone out. The plural “any of them are” emphasizes that anyone in the group could fit the category.

“Any of them is” is as valid as “any of them are”. Which one you will use depends on the exact meaning that you’re trying to convey in a particular situation.

Any of Them Is

“Any of them is” is an expression in which you’re talking about how someone in a group fits into a particular category. This is why it’s perfectly fine to use the singular verb “is” in conjunction with “any”. You use it to talk about someone as an individual.

This expression is completely grammatically correct. You can use it without fear of being incorrect, even though it might seem like an awkward expression initially..

Here are a few example sentences that are going to show you how you can use “any of them is”:

  1. Any of them is a possible candidate for our new test pilot, so we have to be very thorough.
  2. Any of them is good enough to be our newest marketing team leader, so let’s think about this.
  3. Any of them is dangerous enough that they could easily do a lot of harm to this place, be careful.
  4. Any of them is going to be a good fit for the company, so why should we only pick one of them?

Any of Them Are

“Any of them are” is an expression used to talk about people inside a given group. You can use it when you want to give off the impression that you’re talking about more than one person. This works even though you’re nominally singling someone out of the group.

Despite what you might think, “any of them are” is a completely valid and grammatically correct expression. It can be incredibly useful in specific contexts where you want to talk about someone in a group.

These examples are going to teach you how you could easily use “any of them are” in a sentence:

  1. Any of them are potentially our lead suspect, so you should tread carefully in the interview.
  2. Any of them are sure to be incredibly charming and charismatic, that’s why they’re here.
  3. Any of them are already incredibly wealthy and affluent, so money is not a concern for them.
  4. Any of them are sure to help you out if you would only ask them to.

Which Is Used the Most?

According to information provided by the Google Ngram Viewer, “any of them are” is more popular than “any of them is” by a somewhat small margin.

Any of Them Is or Are usage

Ever since the year 1900, “any of them are” has been more popular than “any of them is”.

It’s interesting to denote that in the beginning of the 1900s, the gap between “any of them are” and “any of them is” was immense. However, this gap has been reduced over the ensuing decades.

Any of Them Has or Have?

You can use either “any of them has” or “any of them have”. Use “any of them has” to talk about how an individual person. Use “any of them have” to talk about how many people within a group could be something.

In the following example sentences you can see that when the subject is singular, we use “any of them has”. When the subject is plural, we use “any of them have”.

  • If any of them has an opportunity to leave, I’m sure that he’ll take it.
  • Do you think that any of them have the potential to make it in the program?

Final Thoughts

“Any of them is” and “any of them are” are both grammatically correct and valid sentences. If you’re talking about how someone in a group could be something, use “any of them is”. In contrast, when talking about how everyone in a group could be something, use “any of them are”.