Grammar Info

N4 Lesson 2: 14/17

毎(ごと)にEach, Every

Structure

Verb + ごとに
Noun + ごとに

Details

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About ごとに

ごとに is a combination of the noun ごと, and the particle に. Together, they are used adverbially to express that something happens 'every (A)', or 'at intervals of (A)'. ごとに may be used after any verb (usually in non-past form), or noun.

Although ごとに may be used after verbs, the most common use is with nouns, or phrases that finish with nouns.

Caution

ごと is the 訓読(くんよ)み (Japanese reading) of the kanji 毎(まい), which means 'every'. This fact will be important when trying to remember the difference between ごとに and おきに, a similar grammar point which can also mean 'every', but focuses more on 'interval' or 'gap' of a specific time or distance. Due to おきに focusing on the space between 'each (A)', there are sentences where おきに and ごとに will have different meanings.

  • 私(わたし)は一週間(いっしゅうかん)ごとに実家(じっか)に帰(かえ)ります。
    I go to my parents' home every week. (Every single one)
  • 私(わたし)は一週間(いっしゅうかん)おきに実家(じっか)に帰(かえ)ります。
    I go to my parents' home every other week. (With 'spaces' or 'gaps' of 1 week)

Here, we can see that ごとに will mean 'every week', while おきに will mean 'every second week', due to there being a 'one week interval' when おきに is used. To make things easier, these two expressions can be remembered in the following way.

(A) ごとに = During every (A), (B).

(A) おきに = After every space of (A), (B).

Fun Fact

Many native speakers make mistakes with the difference between おきに and ごとに, so there are quite a large number of people (especially in the younger generation) that will consider them completely interchangeable.

Examples

--:--

    あのチームは、試合(しあい)をする毎(ごと)に強(つよ)くなっている。

    That team is getting stronger with every match.

    夏(なつ)毎(ごと)にアメリカに帰(かえ)ります。

    Every summer I go back to America.

    生徒(せいと)毎(ごと)に紙(かみ)を渡(わた)した。

    I gave a paper to every student. (Each)

    二日(ふつか)毎(ごと)に友達(ともだち)とサッカーをする。

    I play soccer with my friend every two days. (at two day intervals)

    あの人(ひと)は会(あ)う人(ひと)毎(ごと)に笑顔(えがお)で握手(あくしゅ)します。

    That person greets every person they meet with a smile and a handshake.

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ごとに – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (10 in total)

  • gutocbs

    gutocbs

    Hi guys!

    In this sentence, what is the interval?
    生徒毎に紙を渡した。

    I though this grammar would work only with intervals, like time for example, but I can’t see why it is used here.

  • Fuga

    Fuga

    Hey @gutocbs !

    Sorry for the late reply!

    ごとに could also be used to express that something happens ‘every (A)’ and not only as ‘at intervals of (A)’. When it is used like it is in the example you provided, it has the nuance of ‘each’. This means that this sentence has the nuance of ‘to each student, I gave a paper’.

  • gutocbs

    gutocbs

    I see! Thank you!

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