也 / 都 in the Wrong Slot (*我去也) | Chinese (Mandarin) Grammar

English lets "too" and "all" float to comfortable spots — "I'm going too", "they're all students" — and neither position is fixed. Mandarin gives 也 (yě) "also" and 都 (dōu) "all" no such freedom. They are adverbs, and Chinese adverbs live in one place: after the subject, before the verb. So the English-shaped 我去也 ("I go too") and 我们去都 ("we go all") are both wrong, and even fluent-sounding learners betray themselves by stranding 也 at the end the way English does. The rule is short and absolute: 也 and 都 cling to the verb.

The core error: 也 / 都 at the end

❌ 我去也。

Incorrect — 也 is stranded at the end, English-style.

✅ 我也去。

wǒ yě qù

I'm going too. (informal) — 也 sits between subject 我 and verb 去.

❌ 我喜欢也。

Incorrect — 也 must come before the verb: 我也喜欢.

✅ 我也喜欢。

wǒ yě xǐhuan

I like it too. (informal)

❌ 我们去都。

Incorrect — 都 belongs before the verb, not after: 我们都去.

✅ 我们都去。

wǒmen dōu qù

We're all going. (informal) — 都 sits before 去.

The reframing: 都 looks backward

也 is straightforward — it just means "also" and precedes the verb. 都 has one extra twist that generates its own error: 都 sums up whatever comes before it. It scopes backward over the plural or quantified thing to its left, never forward. That is why 都 can never lead the sentence, and why the group it totals must already have been mentioned:

他们都是学生。

tāmen dōu shì xuéshēng

They are all students. (neutral) — 都 totals 他们, which sits to its left.

这些菜我都喜欢。

zhèxiē cài wǒ dōu xǐhuan

I like all these dishes. (informal) — the object 这些菜 is fronted so 都 can look back on it.

我们每天都跑步。

wǒmen měitiān dōu pǎo bù

We run every day. (neutral) — 都 pairs with 每天, summing up 'each and every day'.

💡

Two habits fix 90% of these errors. First, never let 也 or 都 end a clause — they wedge in front of the verb. Second, remember 都 points left: the "all" group (or a 每-phrase) must already sit before it. 每…都 is a near-inseparable pair — 每天都, 每个人都.

When both appear: 也 before 都

Stack them and the order is fixed — 也 first, 都 second — never the reverse:

我们也都喜欢这首歌。

wǒmen yě dōu xǐhuan zhè shǒu gē

We all like this song too. (informal) — fixed order 也都; 都我 or 都也 would both be wrong.

Placement against negation

也 and 都 also come before 不 / 没, not after — another spot where English word order misleads. The scope difference between 都不 ("none of them") and 不都 ("not all of them") is a topic of its own; here just fix the position:

我也不去了。

wǒ yě bú qù le

I'm not going either (anymore). (informal) — 也 precedes 不.

他们都没来。

tāmen dōu méi lái

None of them came. (neutral) — 都 precedes 没.

For the full behaviour of each adverb, see 也 'also' and the scope of 都.

English pull	Wrong (English order)	Right (pre-verbal)
"I'm going too"	❌ 我去也	✅ 我也去
"We all go"	❌ 我们去都 / 都我们去	✅ 我们都去
"We all like it too"	❌ 我们都也喜欢	✅ 我们也都喜欢
"I'm not going either"	❌ 我不也去	✅ 我也不去

Common Mistakes

1. End-placement, English-style (the core error). Adverbs never trail the clause.

❌ 你去，我去也。

Incorrect — 也 goes before the verb: 你去，我也去.

✅ 你去，我也去。

nǐ qù, wǒ yě qù

If you go, I'll go too. (informal)

2. 都 in front of the group it totals. 都 looks left, so the group precedes it.

❌ 都我们是中国人。

Incorrect — the group must come first: 我们都是中国人.

3. Reversing the fixed 也都 order. It is always 也 before 都.

❌ 我们都也喜欢。

Incorrect order — say 我们也都喜欢.

4. Putting 也 / 都 after the negator. They precede 不 / 没.

❌ 我不也去。

Incorrect — 也 comes before 不: 我也不去.

✅ 我也不去。

wǒ yě bú qù

I'm not going either. (informal)

Key Takeaways

也 and 都 are pre-verbal adverbs: after the subject, before the verb — never sentence-final like English "too".
都 scopes backward: the plural / quantified group (or a 每-phrase) must sit to its left — 他们都…, 每天都….
When both occur, the order is fixed: 也 before 都 (我们也都喜欢).
也 and 都 come before 不 / 没, not after (我也不去, 他们都没来).

Now practice Chinese

Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.

Start learning Chinese→