Page 194 - Oxford_English_Grammar_Course_Basic_2015

all and every; each

We use every with singular nouns and verbs. Compare:

All people are interesting. Every person is interesting. (NOT Everypersenare...)
All teachers make mistakes. Every teacher makes mistakes.
We can use other determiners {the, my, this etc) after all, but not after every. Compare:

All the shops were closed. Every shop was closed. (NOT Every the shop...)

^ Rewrite the sentences with every.

► All the buses were late. ..............................................

1 All animals breathe air. .....................................................................................
2 She's read all the books in the library...................................................................
3 I paid all the bills.................................................................................................
4 All the computers are working today...................................................................
5 All languages have verbs.....................................................................................
6 All London trains stop at Reading........................................................................

7 I've written to all the customers...........................................................................
8 All the glasses are dirty........................................................................................
9 All children can be difficult..................................................................................
10 All the roads were closed.....................................................................................

Each and every are similar. We use each for tw o o r m ore, but we use every for th re e o r m ore.
She had a bag in each hand. (NOT... in every hand.) She had a ring on each/every finger.

Can you change each to every in these sentences?

► He's got six earrings in each ear. ..M?:.........................................................................
► I work each day except Sunday. ..¥??.•.. . : : : .................

1 There's a pub on each side of the road............................................................................
2 She wrote a careful answer to each letter.......................................................................
3 He works in London and Paris, and he's got a girlfriend in each city................................

4 She wears a watch on each wrist...................................................
5 My parents are strange, but each one is strange in a different way.

6 Each house in this street looks the same..........................................................................

Note the difference between everyday (= 'on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays etc') and all day
(='from morning to night').

The restaurant is open all day, everyday except Sunday.

‘Behind every successful man ‘Behind every successful man stands a

is a good woman.’ (Traditional) surprised mother-in-law.’ (HubertHumphrey)

‘Behind every successful woman stands a good ‘Behind every successful man is a woman,
man, looking rather confused.’ {EStabetsi) behind her is his wife.’ (Groucho Marx)

In some answers, both contracted forms (for example I'm, don't) and full DETERMINERS 179
forms (for example lam, do not) are possible. Normally both are correct.