everyday

[ adjective ev-ree-dey; noun ev-ree-dey ]

adjective

1. of or relating to every day; daily:

   an everyday occurrence.

2. of or for ordinary days, as contrasted with Sundays, holidays, or special occasions:

   everyday clothes.

   Synonyms: usual, common, workday

3. such as is met with every day; ordinary; commonplace:

   a placid, everyday scene.

   Synonyms: usual, common, workday

noun

1. the routine or ordinary day or occasion:

   We use inexpensive plates for everyday.

everyday

/ ˈɛvrɪˌdeɪ /

adjective

1. happening each day; daily
2. commonplace or usual; ordinary
3. suitable for or used on ordinary days as distinct from Sundays or special days

Other Words From

• every·dayness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of everyday¹

First recorded in 1325–75, everyday is from the Middle English word everydayes. See every, day

Example Sentences

Books like these are intensely personal by nature, packed with the recipes that everyday people believe are good enough to share with the world.

From Eater

With well over 10% of the workforce currently out of a job, many everyday Americans simply don’t have the money to spend at local businesses.

From Fortune

The technology industry must develop other 5G applications that will impact the everyday consumer.

From Fortune

Childcare, Warren said, is as critical to our economy and everyday lives as the roads we drive on or the Internet that connects us to work, entertainment, and each other—in other words, childcare is an integral infrastructure investment.

From Fortune

While a small majority of Americans own stocks, the S&P 500 isn’t really a driving force in their everyday lives, and the richest Americans own the lion’s share of the market.

From Vox

That means that fewer and fewer everyday Americans are choosing to contribute to campaigns.

From The Daily Beast

Carlisle writes that the Air Force would want a crew ratio of 10 to one for each drone orbit during normal everyday operations.

From The Daily Beast

“I walk my kid to school, passed that cop car everyday,” he said.

From The Daily Beast

The idea that women put eyeliner on the inside of their eyes everyday is crazy.

From The Daily Beast

In Guinea, just 42 percent of the population aged 15-24 can both read and write a “short simple statement” in their everyday life.

From The Daily Beast

For in the beginning men took snuff, not as an everyday luxury, but as a medicament.

From Project Gutenberg

In everyday affairs a check is thus given and received, in fact it is only a payment conditioned on payment of the check.

From Project Gutenberg

Moscow was still necessary to his everyday life, and was not altogether unpleasant to him.

From Project Gutenberg

His sketches of everyday living are characterized by his human interest touch and his unique technique of realism at that time.

From Project Gutenberg

Literature reveals the everyday experiences of people as well as their dreams and aspirations.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• commonplace
• frequent
• mundane
• normal
• ordinary
• prosaic
• usual
• workaday

Everyday Vs. Every Day

What’s the difference between everyday and every day?

Everyday is most commonly used as an adjective meaning daily or, in a more figurative sense, ordinary, as in an everyday occurrence. The phrase every day means each day—it functions as an adverb to describe how frequently an action is done, as in I try to exercise every day. 

Think of it this way: everyday is used to describe nouns, while every day is used to describe verbs.

For example, a person might aspire to go for a run every day, eat vegetables every day, and read every day. If they did these things every day (or most days), these activities would constitute part of their everyday routine.

If you can replace the term with regular or ordinary, use everyday. If you can replace it with each day, use every day. Careful—the word daily can be used to replace both terms in certain situations (such as I exercise every day and This is one of my everyday exercises).

Here’s an example of everyday and every day used correctly in the same sentence.

Example: Every day this week I’ve tried to change one thing about my everyday routine.

Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between everyday and every day.

Quiz yourself on everyday vs. every day!

Should everyday or every day be used in the following sentence?

I see my sister _____ except Saturday.