play illustrated notebook that says everyday vs every day
Commonly Confused

'Everyday' vs. 'Every Day'

A simple trick to keep them separate


They're two of the most-confused words in English. Here's a simple method to sort them out.

Transcript

The choice between everyday, one word, and every day, two words, depends on how it's used. Everyday, one word, is an adjective meaning "used or seen daily," or "ordinary." "The phone calls were an everyday occurrence." Every day, two words, is an adverb phrase meaning "daily" or "every weekday." "They go to the coffee shop every day." One trick to remember which is which is to see if you can put another word between "every" and "day," as in "every single day." If you can, you want the two-word adverb.

Up next

play illustrated notebook that says everyday vs every day
'Everyday' vs. 'Every Day'

 

A simple trick to keep them separate

play video cynic
The History of 'Cynic'

 

How an ancient philosophical movement devoted to the pursuit of virtue came to describe eye-rolling criticism.

play backward index mystery
The True Story of the Backward Index

 

These people needed a computer

play how to read a french menu video
How to Read a French Menu

 

How to 'amuse-bouche' without begging pardon for your French

play further vs farther video
Further vs. Farther

 

They started as same word, but their meanings have drifted apart over time.

play mrs malaprop
What is a malaprop?

 

We'll tell you all the perpendiculars

play how to use a dictionary
How to Use a Dictionary

 

The best way to find information in the dictionary