Any vs. Every

any every indefinite determiners

When you face these two words, at first you might think they are synonyms, but there are differences between them.

"Any" vs. "Every" in the English Grammar

What Are Their Main Differences?

In fact, 'any' and 'every' are different in some grammatical functions and what they refer to.

Differences

What 'Any' and 'Every' Mean?

'Any':

can refer to one, several, or all of a certain group of things and people.

'Every':

can refer to all of a certain group, or each individual member in a group.

They didn't have any ideas about solving the problem.

We used to meet each other every Saturday.

Using Nouns

'Any':

is followed by plural countable nouns, or singular uncountable nouns.

'Every':

is used with singular countable nouns.

You can take any dresses of mine, if you like to wear for the party.

I don't have any information about this course.

You are responsible for every action you take.

Grammatical Functions

'Any' is used as:

a determiner
an adverb
a pronoun.

'Every' is used as:

a determiner.

Do you have any siblings? → determiner

I wasn't acting any weird. → adverb

"Did you bring the glitter?" "I didn't have any." → pronoun

Every actor was trying to get the Emmy Award. → determiner

Following Verbs

'Any':

is used with singular and plural verbs.

'Every':

is used with singular verbs.

Any book teaches you something new.

There were not any cats at the vet.

Every member of my family has a different taste in food.

Comments

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