John Doe
John Doe · John Does
Иван Иванович Иванов, имярек
Max Mustermann, Otto Normalverbraucher
Any unknown or anonymous, usually male, personAny unknown or anonymous, usually male, person.
Meaning
1 senses(US)Any unknown or anonymous, usually male, person.
Max Mustermann, Otto Normalverbraucher
имяре́кimjarék, Иван Иванович ИвановIvan Ivanovič Ivanov, Вася ПупкинVasja Pupkin
More definitions
- an unknown or fictitious man who is a party to legal proceedings
- a hypothetical average man
Translations
8 languagesРусский
By meaning 1
any unknown or anonymous male person:
Deutsch
By meaning 1
any unknown or anonymous male person:
Origin
Books that documented and taught the legal profession in England were using the names JohnBooks that documented and taught the legal profession in England were using the names John Smith, John Doe, Richard Roe, and others as generic placeholder names (for roles, such as plaintiff, defendant, petitioner, etc) by the mid-seventeenth century (perhaps earlier). Compare also Tommy Atkins.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
plural: John DoesSynonyms
3 synonymsClose in meaning
- a hypothetical average man:Joe BlowJoe Bloggsman in the street