How to use “都” in Chinese

The adverb 都(dōu) is used to express "all" in Chinese. It's very common to use 都(dōu) in all sorts of sentences where we would find it unnecessary in English.

中文里的副词"都(dōu)"是表示"_全部 (all)"的意思。中文的各种句型用到"都"是很常见的，而这在英文里却显得多余。

都 for "all"

Structure

结构

Subject + 都 + [Verb Phrase]

主语+都+动词短语

Remember that 都(dōu) appears after the subject. A common mistake learners make is to put 都(dōu) at the beginning of the sentence (as "all" often appears there in English). This isn't good Chinese – make sure you put 都(dōu) after the subject and before the verb.

注意"都"是用在主语的后面。学中文的人比较常犯的错误就是将"都"放在句子的最前面（因为英文里"all"经常出现在开头）。这不是正确的中文，一定要确保把"都"用在主语之后动词之前。

Examples

例子

我们 都 爱 你 。

Wǒmen dōu ài nǐ.

We all love you.

你们 都 学 中文 吗 ？

Nǐmen dōu xué Zhōngwén ma?

Do you all study Chinese?

你们 都 认识 John 吗 ？

Nǐmen dōu rènshi John ma?

Do you all know John?

我们 都 在 上海 。

Wǒmen dōu zài Shànghǎi.

We are all in Shanghai.

我们 都 可以 去 吗 ？

Wǒmen dōu kěyǐ qù ma?

Can we all go?

他们 都 踢 足球 。

Tāmen dōu tī zúqiú.

They all play soccer.

你们 都 喜欢 喝 咖啡 吗 ？

Nǐmen dōu xǐhuan hē kāfēi ma?

Do you all like drinking coffee?

都 for "both"

Chinese doesn't normally use a special word for "both" like English does. It just uses 都(dōu). This is actually really easy; you just have to get used to it.

中文里一般不会和英文一样使用特殊字词表达"both"的意思。中文仅仅用到"都"这个字。实际上这样更简单，你只需要适应就行了。

Structure

结构

[Subject which is two people or things ] + 都 + [Verb Phrase]

[两个人或事物构成的主语]+都+[动词短语]

These examples follow exactly the same form in Chinese as the ones above. The only difference is that here we don't translate 都(dōu) as "all" in English; we translate it as "both," and for negative cases, we translate it as "neither."

以下的例子都是上一部分里的例句格式。唯一的区别就是这里不将"都"翻译成英文里的"all"，而是译成"both"，而对于否定情况，则翻译成"neither"。

Examples

例子

我们 两 个 都 爱 你 。

Wǒmen liǎng gè dōu ài nǐ.

The two of us both love you.

你们 两 个 都 学 中文 吗 ？

Nǐmen liǎng gè dōu xué Zhōngwén ma?

Do you both study Chinese?

我 和 我 老公 都 是 美国 人 。

Wǒ hé wǒ lǎogōng dōu shì Měiguó rén.

My husband and I are both Americans.

我 和 我 太太 都 在 上海。

Wǒ hé wǒ tàitai dōu zài Shànghǎi.

My wife and I are both in Shanghai.

我 和 他 都 喜欢 中国 菜 。

Wǒ hé tā dōu xǐhuan Zhōngguó cài.

He and I both like Chinese food.

你 爸爸 和 妈妈 都 是 中国 人 吗？

Nǐ bàba hé māma dōu shì Zhōngguó rén ma?

Are your mom and dad both Chinese?

他们 两 个 都 不 喝 酒。

Tāmen liǎng gè dōu bù hē jǐu.

Neither of the two of them drink alcohol.

你们 两 个 都 不 可以 走。

Nǐmen liǎng gè dōu bù kěyǐ zǒu.

Neither of you two may leave.