Japanese Frequency: Mainichi, Yoku, and Shuu Ni Nankai

Frequency expressions tell you how often an activity happens. Some are approximate, such as よく and ときどき; others give a count within a period, such as 週に三回. Learn the negative partners あまり〜ない and 全然〜ない as complete patterns.

Formation and use

毎日, 毎朝, and 毎週 normally stand without a time に in neutral statements. They differ from a specific clock time such as 七時に.

よく can mean often; ときどき means sometimes. Exact percentages are not built into these words. A learning chart with invented universal percentages would be misleading.

Comparisons and common errors

あまり with a negative means not very often or not much: あまり飲みません. 全然 with a negative can mean not at all: 全然飲みません. Keep the negative predicate in these basic patterns.

週に三回 means three times a week; 三週間 means three weeks. 回 counts occurrences, while 間 can build a duration. Ask 週に何回 to request a frequency count.

Practise with explanations

Try the 10 questions below, or open the practice set. Check each answer or the whole set, read the explanation, and retry mistakes. First-attempt results are kept separately on this device.

Connected lessons

• Japanese Masu Form: Polite Present, Negative, and Past
• Itsu, Nanji, and Nanyoubi: Ask About Time
• Japanese Nai Form: Verb Negatives and Exceptions