마다
마다: Every — Each Time, Each One
Every / each — either each occurrence of a time unit, or each and every one of a set.
How to form it
| When | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Time noun (cycle) | N + 마다 | 주말마다 / 날마다 / 해마다 |
| Each item / person | N + 마다 | 사람마다 / 나라마다 |
마다 means every / each when it sits after a noun.
세종 초급2’s holiday unit title uses 주말마다 — the time-cycle reading: each weekend.
주말마다 산에 가요. I go to the mountain every weekend.
날마다 운동해요. I exercise every day.
사람마다 달라요. It differs from person to person.Two dictionary jobs (same particle)
우리말샘 lists, among others:
| Sense | Gloss | Example feel |
|---|---|---|
| Each / every item | 낱낱이 모두 | 사람마다 |
| Each time unit | 그 시기에 한 번씩 | 주말마다 |
Beginner holiday talk leans on the cycle sense. The each one sense shows up early in real speech too — do not pretend only one exists.
Not 도, not 만, not bare 에
| Form | Job |
|---|---|
| 도 | also / even |
| 만 | only |
| (시간)에 | at that time (once) |
| 마다 | every occurrence / each item |
주말에 가요 = this weekend (or weekends as a time slot). 주말마다 가요 = as a habit, every weekend.
Practice rule
English every + noun → Korean noun + 마다. Build the cycle first (주말마다, 날마다); add 사람마다 when you mean each person.
Do not confuse it with
Taught alongside this
On the jabi learning path, this appears in 주말마다 산에 가요 (I go to the mountains every weekend) — Beginner Korean 2, Unit 9, on the theme of day off. These come with it:
Words used above
Quick check
No sign-up, no score saved — just see if it stuck.
1. What does 주말마다 산에 가요 mean?
2. How does 마다 differ from 도?
3. Which is the natural 'every day' shape with 마다?
Common questions
Is 마다 only for time?
No. Dictionaries list a 'each and every' sense (사람마다) and a time-cycle sense (주말마다). Sejong's holiday unit highlights the cycle reading in the unit title.
How is this different from 에 on a time?
e-time marks when something happens once (주말에). 마다 marks the repeated cycle (주말마다).
Do I say every weekends in Korean?
No English plural/article calque. Use the bare noun + 마다: 주말마다, not a translated *every weekends*.
Is the verb 마다 related?
Same spelling appears in other dictionary entries. This grammar slot is only the particle after nouns.