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'Everyday' or 'Every Day'? What Is the Difference? | Mastering Grammar

Jeff Lau Wednesday, February 02, 2022
(Last Updated: 10 January 2023)

Everyday vs Every Day: What Is the Difference?

Do you know when to write everyday and when it should be every day? This blog post will help you get it right.

The Difference between Everyday and Every Day

Everyday is an adjective meaning 'commonplace' or 'ordinary'. It should come before a noun—as in everyday clothing, everyday life, and everyday activity. Typically, people misuse this one-word form in situations calling for two words:

❌ Tom listens to music everyday.
✅ Tom listens to music every day.

❌ They go to the coffee shop everyday.
✅ They go to the coffee shop every day.

Every day is an adverbial phrase telling how frequently an action takes place—as in I play football every day.

Tips for Remembering the Difference between Everyday and Every Day

An image of text that says the one-word form 'everyday' should come before a noun—as in everyday occurrence, everyday diet, and everyday English. Use the two-word form if it can be replaced with 'each day'.
Everyday (1 word) means 'commonplace' or 'ordinary'. Every day (2 words) means 'each day'.

Examples from the Media

In addition to causing back pain and other daily aches, this inflexibility can make it harder to do everyday tasks, such as picking up a fork that has dropped to the floor or turning your neck to look over your shoulder while you're driving. —The Washington Post (2022)

Shifting to a low-carbon economy will profoundly change the everyday lives of Canadians. —Toronto Star (2021)

I resolved to swim a kilometre in a local ocean pool every day. —The Sydney Morning Herald (2021)

At other restaurants [in hotels] because of rotating schedules, it can be rare to have the chef and manager working on the same day, and yet guests are paying the same price every day. —South China Morning Post (2021)

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'Everyday' or 'Every Day'? Which One Is Correct?

Practice

In the following sentences, decide whether the given expression should be one word or two.

1. I am bored with my everyday/every day routine.

2. It is good to read everyday/every day.

3. He goes to the library everyday/every day.

4. Going to the library is his everyday/every day activity.

Answer Key

1. everyday    2. every day    3. every day    4. everyday

Real-World Examples of Misuse

An MTR poster showing the slogan, 'Climb stairs everyday for good health and happiness'. Here, the word 'everyday' should have been written as two separate words.


A Poundland lorry emblazoned with the company's slogan, 'Amazing value everyday!' Here, the word 'everyday' should have been written as two separate words.


A DeLonghi poster showing the company's slogan, 'Better Everyday'. Here, the word 'everyday' should have been written as two separate words.

A Dole poster showing the company's slogan, 'Fresh banana everyday!' Here, the plural form 'bananas' should have been used and the word 'everyday' should have been written as two separate words.


1. I believe that this was the intended meaning of the sentence. In other words, we don't want to do this, but we have to.
2. But is not used with although or even though.
3. Every day should be two separate words in this sentence.

1. A person plays truant from school. To play truant is to stay away from school without permission.
2. The two-word form every day should be used in this sentence.


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