Frequency Adverbs 往往 and 偶尔
Describe what usually happens in a given situation with 往往, say “once in a while” with 偶尔, and know when 常常 is the right choice instead.
Padrão
situation / time + 往往 + verb phrase; 偶尔 (+ 也/会) + verb
往往 sums up a pattern you have noticed, so it never works for plans or requests; use 常常 for those.
周末他往往在家看书。
Quando usar Advérbios de frequência 往往 e 偶尔
Both go right before the verb. 往往 means “usually, tends to”: it sums up what has regularly happened in a certain situation, so the sentence normally names that situation: 周末他往往在家看书. 偶尔 means “occasionally, once in a while”: 我偶尔喝咖啡. Because 往往 describes a pattern you have noticed, it is not used for plans, wishes or requests.
天气不好的时候,路上往往堵车。
When the weather is bad, there are usually traffic jams.
我偶尔喝咖啡。
I drink coffee once in a while.
她偶尔会给我打电话。
She calls me now and then.
第一次做的事情往往比较难。
Things you do for the first time tend to be hard.
Erros comuns
- Don’t use 往往 for plans or requests: 以后我会常常来看你, not 以后我会往往来看你.
- Give 往往 a situation: 下雨天他往往不出门 sounds right, while a bare 他往往不出门 sounds incomplete.
- For one lucky meeting say 我偶然遇到了他, not 我偶尔遇到了他: 偶然 is “by chance”, 偶尔 is “once in a while”.
Exercício direcionado
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