35 Talking about habitual actions
Habitual actions are actions that occur regularly. The following time expressions and adverbs
are used to express habitual actions in Chinese.
35.1 expressing habitual time with the word 每 mGi ‘every/each’
Time expressions that indicate habitual action include the word 每 měi ‘every/each.’ As with other
expressions that indicate the time when an action occurs, these expressions occur right after
the subject, at the beginning of the predicate. Commonly used time expressions include:
每个小时/每個小時 měi gè xiǎoshí every hour
每个钟头/每個鐘頭 měi gè zhōngtóu every hour
每天 měitiān every day
每天晚上 měitiān wǎnshang every evening
每个礼拜/每個禮拜 měi gè lǐbài every week
每个星期/每個星期 měi gè xīngqī every week
每个月/每個月 měi gè yuè every month
每年 měi nián every year
The adverb 都 dōu may also occur with these expressions, right before the verb or, if there is
a prepositional phrase, right before the prepositional phrase.
我每天八点半都去上班。
我每天八點半都去上班。
Wǒ měitiān bādiǎn bàn dōu qù shàng bān.
I go to work every day at 8:30.
她每个星期都回家看父母一次。
她每個星期都回家看父母一次。
Tā měi gè xīngqī dōu huí jiā kàn fùmǔ yīcì.
She goes home once every week to see her parents.
我每个月都跟朋友去看电影。
我每個月都跟朋友去看電影。
Wǒ měi gè yuè dōu gēn péngyou qù kàn diànyǐng.
Every month I go with my friends to see a movie.
35.2 expressing habitual time with 天天 tiAntiAn and 年年 niánnián
天 tiān and 年 nián may also occur in the following phrases to indicate habitual action.
天天 tiāntiān every day
年年 niánnián every year
大学生天天都很忙。
大學生天天都很忙。
Dàxuéshēng tiāntiān dōu hěn máng.
University students are busy every day.
