▎每, mĕi, (Det), each and every (1)

 

Function The determiner 每měi indicates each and every .

1 他妹妹每天都上班。不休息。

Tā mèimei měi tiān dōu shàngbān. Bù xiūxí.

His sister works every days. She doesn’t take days off.

2 他朋友每個週末都去游泳。

Tā péngyǒu měi ge zhōumò dōu qù yóuyǒng.

His friend goes to the swimming every weekend.

3 每一間教室都可以上網。

Měi yì jiān jiàoshì dōu kěyǐ shàngwǎng.

The internet can be accessed from every classroom.

4 他家人，每個人都會說法語。

Tā jiārén, měi ge rén dōu huì shuō Fǎyǔ.

Everyone in his family can speak French.

 

Structures 每 is a determiner. A determiner precedes numbers. Sentences with 每 almost always include the adverb 都dōu ‘all’ to reinforce the sense of ‘no exception’. 每＋M＋N＋都…. See the examples above.

Negation：

(1) Determiners themselves cannot be negated but the VPs that follow can.

1 他每天都不忙。

Tā měi tiān dōu bù máng.

He gets lots of free time every day.

2 我媽媽每個週末都沒空。

Wǒ māma měi ge zhōumò dōu méi kòng.

My mom is busy every weekend.

3 這家商店，每支手機都不便宜。

Zhè jiā shāngdiàn, měi zhī shǒujī dōu bù piányí.

Every cellphone (sold) in this store is not cheap.

(2) To indicate ‘it is not the case that...’, 不是búshì is used before determiners.

1 他朋友不是每天都去看電影。

Tā péngyǒu búshì měi tiān dōu qù kàn diànyǐng.

His friend does not go to see a movie every day.

2 我們不是每天都有書法課。

Wǒmen búshì měi tiān dōu yǒu shūfǎ kè.

We don’t have calligraphy class every day.

3 他的兄弟姐妹不是每個人都喜歡打球。

Tā de xiōngdì jiěmèi búshì měi ge rén dōu xǐhuān dǎ qiú.

Not all his siblings like to play ball.

Questions：

1 他每個週末都去哪裡運動？

Tā měi ge zhōumò dōu qù nǎlǐ yùndòng?

Where does he go every weekend to exercise?

2 你爸爸每天都在家吃晚飯嗎？

Nǐ bàba měi tiān dōu zài jiā chī wǎnfàn ma?

Does your dad eat dinner at home every day?

3 他的照片，每張都很好看嗎？

Tā de zhàopiàn, měi zhāng dōu hěn hǎokàn ma?

Does every one of his photos look nice?

 

Usage 每天měi tiān is the same as 每一天měi yì tiān ‘every (single) day’. 一yī ‘one’ is often omitted. Similarly, 每個měi ge is the same as 每一個měi yí ge ‘every (single) one’ , etc.