anytime

anytime — adverb

1. on any occasion you choose, with no fixed hour or day in mind; the speaker is le

1.adverbB1
Definition

on any occasion you choose, with no fixed hour or day in mind; the speaker is leaving the moment open rather than pinning it down.

Example

Camille told her cousin she could drop by anytime after seven on Friday.

anytime after + time expression

The clinic on Park Road accepts walk-in patients anytime between nine and five.

anytime between X and Y

Common collocations
  • drop by anytime
  • call anytime
  • anytime soon
  • anytime now
  • anytime between
  • almost anytime
Synonyms
  • whenever

    stronger sense of 'no matter when'; often introduces a clause

  • at any time

    two-word formal equivalent; preferred in writing and official notices

  • any old time

    very informal; suggests speaker is relaxed about timing

Antonyms
  • never

    rules out every possible moment, the opposite of 'on any occasion'

  • at a fixed time

    phrase, not a single word; opposes the open-ended sense

Grammar Patterns

anytime + clause

anytime between/before/after + time

Usage Note

Common in informal speech and writing; in formal documents 'at any time' is preferred. Often appears at the end of a clause or before a 'between/after/before' phrase. The fixed expression 'anytime now' means 'very soon'.

Common Mistakes

I will see you any time soon.
I will see you anytime soon.
when meaning 'at any moment from now', write it as one word.
Please file the report anytime by Friday.
Please file the report any time before Friday.
in formal instructions with a deadline, the two-word 'any time' is clearer.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adverb/1

All four point to an open, unfixed moment, but they sit at different registers. 'Anytime' is the everyday, friendly choice — common in invitations like 'call anytime'. 'Whenever' adds a stronger 'no matter when' flavour and usually leads into a clause: 'whenever you're ready'. 'At any time' is the formal, written form, used in notices, contracts, and announcements ('passengers may board at any time'). The two-word 'any time' is a noun phrase and works better with prepositions or deadlines, as in 'I don't have any time' or 'finish it by any time before noon'. Use 'anytime' in casual chat, 'whenever' when emphasising freedom of choice, and 'at any time' when the tone is official.

anytime ↗whenever ↗at any timeany time

Common collocations

Adverbs

Phrases

Prepositions

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishModern American English

A modern American compound formed by joining 'any' (Old English 'ænig', meaning 'one of a kind') with 'time' (Old English 'tīma', meaning 'a stretch or point of time'). The two-word phrase 'any time' has been used in English since the Middle Ages, but the closed one-word adverb 'anytime' became popular in everyday American writing during the early twentieth century and has since spread into informal British use as well.