Structure
Verb + ごとに
Noun + ごとに
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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 訓読み (Japanese reading) of the kanji 毎, 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.
- 私は一週間ごとに実家に帰ります。I go to my parents' home every week. (Every single one)
- 私は一週間おきに実家に帰ります。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.Synonyms
に (Frequency)
Times (In each time period), Every, Frequency of
Not studied yet
たびに
Each time, Every time, Whenever
Not studied yet
おきに
Repeated at intervals, Every other, Every, At intervals of
Not studied yet
につけ
Whenever, Every time something happens
Not studied yet
まい~のように
Almost every ~, Nearly every ~, On a ~ basis
Not studied yet
Examples
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あのチームは、試合をする毎に強くなっている。
That team is getting stronger with every match.
夏毎にアメリカに帰ります。
Every summer I go back to America.
生徒毎に紙を渡した。
I gave a paper to every student. (Each)
二日毎に友達とサッカーをする。
I play soccer with my friend every two days. (at two day intervals)
あの人は会う人毎に笑顔で握手します。
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
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
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
I see! Thank you!
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