"every once in a while" 是副词短语,意为“偶尔;时不时;间或”,强调动作或事件并非频繁发生,而是间隔不定地出现(频率低于 "often",高于 "rarely")。
它与 "once in a while" 意思几乎一致,只是多了 "every" 来轻微加强“每一次间隔”的感觉,但实际使用中两者可互换。
作为副词短语,它主要用来修饰动词、形容词或整个句子,可灵活放置在句首、句中或句尾,位置不影响语义。
Every once in a while, I treat myself to a fancy coffee.
(偶尔我会犒劳自己喝一杯昂贵的咖啡。)
Every once in a while, it’s okay to skip the gym and rest.
(偶尔不去健身房休息一下也没关系。)
She checks her emails every once in a while during the meeting.
(她开会时会时不时查看电子邮件。)
We every once in a while go hiking in the mountains on weekends.
(我们周末偶尔去山里徒步。)
注:此句更自然的表达是把短语放在句尾,如 "We go hiking... every once in a while."
I like to rewatch my favorite movie every once in a while.
(我时不时会重看我最爱的电影。)
They get together for dinner every once in a while.
(他们偶尔聚在一起吃晚饭。)
拼写易错点:不要写成 "every once a while"(正确介词是 "in")。
同义替换:可替换为 "occasionally"、"from time to time"、"now and then" 等,但 "every once in a while" 更口语化,适合日常对话。
总结:这个短语是描述“非频繁但定期/不定期发生的动作”的常用表达,用法灵活,几乎适用于所有场景~