John Doe
Unnamed legal party
John Doe is a placeholder name for a man whose identity is unknown or intentionally concealed.
It appears frequently in legal contexts—unidentified bodies, anonymous plaintiffs, hypothetical defendants: The police listed the victim as John Doe.
Jane Doe is the female equivalent.
Outside legal settings, John Doe suggests an ordinary, unremarkable person: any John Doe off the street.
Temporary position marker
- unidentifiedNot yet recognized
- unknownNot yet discovered
- namelessWithout any designation
- facelessLacking identity or features
incognito · pseudonym · alias · anonymous · untraceable · confidential · undisclosed · mystery man
Ordinary representative person
- average JoeUnremarkable common person
- common manTypical ordinary citizen
- man on the streetCommon person, not expert
- Joe PublicThe average citizen
Joe Bloggs · regular guy · nobody special · unremarkable · rank-and-file · layman · commoner · mainstream
Party facing charges
- plaintiffCivil case initiator
- fictitious nameMade-up appellation
- protective orderCourt mandate forbidding contact
- witness protectionHiding those who testified
sealed indictment · court documents · deposition · litigation · subpoena · injunction · probate · autopsy report
placeholder
Temporary position marker
- unidentifiedNot yet recognized
- unknownNot yet discovered
- namelessWithout any designation
faceless · incognito · pseudonym · alias · anonymous · untraceable · confidential · undisclosed · mystery man · hidden identity
everyman
Ordinary representative person
- average JoeUnremarkable common person
- common manTypical ordinary citizen
- man on the streetCommon person, not expert
Joe Public · Joe Bloggs · regular guy · nobody special · unremarkable · rank-and-file · layman · commoner · mainstream · middle-class
defendant
Party facing charges
- plaintiffCivil case initiator
- fictitious nameMade-up appellation
- protective orderCourt mandate forbidding contact
witness protection · sealed indictment · court documents · deposition · litigation · subpoena · injunction · probate · autopsy report · next of kin
- Everymanaverage Joe, everyman, common man, regular Joe, regular guy
- placeholder namesJane Roe, Joe Bloggs, Average Joe
- placeholder peopleaverage Joe, everyman, Alice, Bob, Eve
- common namescommon names, Jane, Joe, Bob, Bill
- mysterious figuresenigma, phantom, shadowy figure, mysterious stranger, mystery man
- unknownsmystery, enigma, puzzle, riddle, uncertain
John Doehousehold name
Widely recognized person or brand
celebrity · public figure · notable figure · VIP · historical figure