often

表示某件事反复发生、次数很多，通常作副词，意为“经常、常常”；作形容词的用法已过时。

💡 记忆钩子

把 often 想成一件事在时间线上反复出现：出现一次不算，出现了很多次，就是“经常”。这个核心意义通常作副词修饰动作；过去也可放在名词前表示“频繁的”，但这种形容词用法如今已很少见。

📝 学习建议

先掌握作副词的“经常、常常”，不要把 often 误解成“一直”或“总是”；它表示频率较高，但不等于每一次都发生。
注意 often 与中文“往往”的语气并不完全相同；often 主要说明发生频率，而“往往”还常带有某种规律或倾向。

📖 中文释义

adj

rare 频繁的（过时）

📖 它曾经可以直接修饰名词，表示某事或某物出现得频繁；这种用法在现代英语中已经很少见，通常应改用副词 often 来说明动作经常发生。

💡 历史文本中可见“often + 名词”的结构，但现代英语中这种结构通常不自然。学习和写作时不要把 often 当作普通形容词使用；应优先使用它的副词用法。

archaic

more often comparative most often superlative

adv

core 经常；常常

📖 表示一件事在不同时间发生过很多次，但不一定每次都发生。它是说明频率的常用副词，常放在主要动词前，帮助听者理解某个动作出现得很频繁。

💡 常用句型是“主语 + often + 动词”，例如说明某人经常做某事；在含有系动词的句子中，often 常放在系动词后。它比“总是”弱，不要用它表达百分之百发生，也不要直接把中文“常常”所在的位置机械地套入所有英语句子。

I often read before going to bed.

我经常在睡觉前看书。

more often comparative oftener comparative most often superlative oftenest superlative

📘 英文释义 (WordNet) 共 3 组

many times at short intervals

同义词集: frequently often oftentimes oft ofttimes

we often met over a cup of coffee

反义: infrequently, rarely, seldom

frequently or in great quantities;

同义词集: much a great deal often

I don't drink much

I don't travel much

in many cases or instances

同义词集: often

🌳 词源

源自古英语 oft，后来在中古英语中加上词尾形成 often；它与德语 oft、丹麦语 ofte 等表示“经常”的词同源。

From Middle English often, alteration (with final -n added due to analogy with Middle English selden (“seldom”)) of Middle English ofte, oft, from Old English oft (“often”), from Proto-Germanic *ufta, *uftō (“often”). Cognates Cognate with Scots affen, aften, af'en, oaffen, oaften, oftin (“often”), North Frisian aaft, oftem, oofting (“often”), Saterland Frisian oafte (“often”), German, Luxembourgish and Pennsylvania German oft (“often”), Yiddish אָפֿט (oft, “often”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål and Norwegian Nynorsk ofte (“often”), Faroese, Swedish ofta (“often”), Icelandic oft (“often”), Gothic 𐌿𐍆𐍄𐌰 (ufta, “often”).

🔄 变式

more often compar most often superl oftener compar oftenest superl

🏷 单词标签 & 词根