dàjiā: 大家 - Everybody, Everyone, All

• Keywords: 大家, dajia, everyone in Chinese, everybody in Chinese, Chinese pronoun, how to say everyone, Chinese group address, HSK 1 vocabulary, Chinese collectivism
• Summary: Discover the meaning of 大家 (dàjiā), the essential Chinese word for “everybody” or “everyone.” This comprehensive guide breaks down the characters 大 (big) and 家 (family) to reveal its deep cultural roots in collectivism. Perfect for HSK 1 learners, you'll learn how to use 大家 in everyday conversations, from greetings like “大家好 (dàjiā hǎo)” to making group announcements. Understand the crucial difference between 大家 and 你们 (nǐmen), and master its use with practical examples.

• Pinyin (with tone marks): dàjiā
• Part of Speech: Pronoun
• HSK Level: HSK 1
• Concise Definition: A pronoun used to refer to all people present or in a group; everybody, everyone.
• In a Nutshell: 大家 (dàjiā) is your go-to word for addressing or referring to a group of people. It's warm, inclusive, and one of the most common words in Mandarin. Literally translating to “big family,” it carries a feeling of community and togetherness. Think of it as the perfect way to say “hey everyone,” “all of you,” or “folks” in a friendly and natural way.

• 大 (dà): This character means “big,” “large,” or “great.” The character itself is a pictogram of a person (人) stretching their arms out wide to show how big something is.
• 家 (jiā): This character means “family,” “home,” or “household.” The top radical (宀) represents a roof, and the bottom part (豕) originally depicted a pig. In ancient China, a pig was a vital domestic animal, so a “pig under a roof” symbolized a home and the family within it.
• Combined Meaning: Together, 大家 (dàjiā) literally means “big family.” This paints a beautiful picture of its function: when you use 大家, you are addressing a group not as a collection of separate individuals, but as a single, cohesive unit—a “big family,” even if they are colleagues, classmates, or strangers in a crowd.

The term 大家 (dàjiā) is a window into the collectivist nature of Chinese culture. While in the West, the individual is often the primary social unit, in China, the group (the family, the company, the nation) holds immense importance.

• Group Harmony vs. Individualism: Using 大家 subtly reinforces the idea of the group's precedence. When a leader says, “希望大家努力工作” (xīwàng dàjiā nǔlì gōngzuò - “I hope everyone works hard”), the focus is on the collective effort for a shared goal, rather than on individual performance.
• Comparison to “You All” / “Everyone”: In English, “everyone” or “you guys” is a simple plural. It's a summation of individuals. 大家, with its “big family” origin, has a warmer, more unified connotation. It's conceptually closer to the inclusive, friendly feel of “y'all” from the American South, but with a deeper cultural foundation in group identity. It dissolves the speaker/audience barrier, often including the speaker themself within the group.

Using 大家 shows cultural awareness by acknowledging and respecting the group as a single, important entity.

大家 is an extremely versatile and common pronoun used in virtually all social settings.

• Greetings: It's the standard way to greet any group of two or more people. “大家好! (dàjiā hǎo!)” is the “Hello, everyone!” you'll hear in classrooms, meetings, and on TV shows.
• Making Requests and Announcements: It is used to politely address a group when giving instructions or making announcements. It's softer and more inclusive than directly ordering “you all” (你们).
• Expressing General Opinions: When talking about what “people” or “everyone” thinks, 大家 is the natural choice. It's almost always paired with the adverb 都 (dōu), meaning “all.”
• Formality: 大家 is a neutral term that works in both formal and informal situations. It's appropriate for a CEO addressing the company, a teacher speaking to students, or a friend talking to a group at dinner. For very formal speeches, 各位 (gèwèi) might be used as an alternative.

• Example 1:
  • 大家好！我是你们的新老师。
  • Pinyin: Dàjiā hǎo! Wǒ shì nǐmen de xīn lǎoshī.
  • English: Hello everyone! I am your new teacher.
  • Analysis: This is the classic group greeting. It's the first phrase many teachers use to address a new class.
• Example 2:
  • 请大家安静一下，会议马上开始。
  • Pinyin: Qǐng dàjiā ānjìng yīxià, huìyì mǎshàng kāishǐ.
  • English: Could everyone please be quiet for a moment, the meeting is about to start.
  • Analysis: A polite and standard way to get a group's attention in a formal or informal setting.
• Example 3:
  • 大家都觉得这个主意很棒。
  • Pinyin: Dàjiā dōu juédé zhège zhǔyi hěn bàng.
  • English: Everyone thinks this idea is great.
  • Analysis: Note the essential use of 都 (dōu) after 大家 to mean “all.” This structure is extremely common when expressing a unanimous or general opinion.
• Example 4:
  • 祝大家周末愉快！
  • Pinyin: Zhù dàjiā zhōumò yúkuài!
  • English: (I) wish everyone a happy weekend!
  • Analysis: A common and friendly phrase you might hear from a colleague or boss at the end of the work week.
• Example 5:
  • 今天的晚饭我请客，大家随便吃。
  • Pinyin: Jīntiān de wǎnfàn wǒ qǐngkè, dàjiā suíbiàn chī.
  • English: Dinner tonight is my treat, everyone eat as much as you like.
  • Analysis: Here, 大家 is used informally among friends to mean “everybody here.”
• Example 6:
  • 如果大家没有问题，我们就下课了。
  • Pinyin: Rúguǒ dàjiā méiyǒu wèntí, wǒmen jiù xiàkè le.
  • English: If everyone has no questions, then we'll end class.
  • Analysis: A standard phrase used by teachers or presenters to check for understanding before concluding.
• Example 7:
  • 这个项目需要大家一起努力才能完成。
  • Pinyin: Zhège xiàngmù xūyào dàjiā yīqǐ nǔlì cáinéng wánchéng.
  • English: This project requires everyone's collective effort to be completed.
  • Analysis: This sentence perfectly captures the collectivist spirit of 大家, emphasizing a shared group effort.
• Example 8:
  • 大家快来看！这里有只很可爱的小猫。
  • Pinyin: Dàjiā kuài lái kàn! Zhèlǐ yǒu zhǐ hěn kě'ài de xiǎo māo.
  • English: Everyone, come look quickly! There's a very cute kitten here.
  • Analysis: An excited, informal call to a group of people nearby.
• Example 9:
  • 我觉得大家对他的误会太深了。
  • Pinyin: Wǒ juédé dàjiā duì tā de wùhuì tài shēn le.
  • English: I think everyone misunderstands him too deeply.
  • Analysis: Here, 大家 refers to a general “everybody” or “people in general” who hold a certain opinion.
• Example 10:
  • 感谢大家的参与和支持。
  • Pinyin: Gǎnxiè dàjiā de cānyù hé zhīchí.
  • English: Thank you all for your participation and support.
  • Analysis: A common and polite way to conclude a presentation, event, or group activity.

• 大家 (dàjiā) vs. 你们 (nǐmen): This is the most common point of confusion.
  • 你们 (nǐmen) means “you (plural).” It directly addresses the people you are speaking to, creating a clear distinction between “I” and “you.”
  • 大家 (dàjiā) means “everyone.” It is more inclusive and can often include the speaker. It addresses the group as a whole entity.
  • Context is key: In a classroom, a teacher can say “请你们安静” (Please you all be quiet) or “请大家安静” (Please everyone be quiet). The meaning is nearly identical. However, if you are telling a friend about a party you all attended, you would say “大家都玩得很开心” (Everyone had a great time), not “你们都玩得很开心,” because you are referring to the entire group as a collective, including yourself.
• Forgetting to use 都 (dōu): When making a statement about what “everyone” does or thinks, 大家 is almost always followed by the adverb 都 (dōu), meaning “all.”
  • Correct: 大家都喜欢中国菜。(Dàjiā dōu xǐhuān Zhōngguó cài.) - Everyone likes Chinese food.
  • Unnatural: 大家喜欢中国菜。(Dàjiā xǐhuān Zhōngguó cài.) - While grammatically possible, it sounds less natural and complete to a native speaker.
• Literal Translation Mistake: Do not use 大家 to literally mean “a big family.” It is a pronoun, not a noun for a family unit.
  • Incorrect: 我的家庭是一个大家。
  • Correct: 我有一个大家庭。(Wǒ yǒu yīgè dà jiātíng.) - I have a big family. (Using 大家庭 as the noun).

• 你们 (nǐmen) - You (plural). A direct address to a group, less broadly inclusive than 大家.
• 各位 (gèwèi) - A more formal way to say “everyone,” equivalent to “ladies and gentlemen” or “distinguished guests.” Used at the start of speeches.
• 人人 (rénrén) - “Every single person.” Emphasizes each individual within a whole, often used in set phrases like 人人有责 (rénrén yǒu zé - “every person has a responsibility”).
• 大伙儿 (dàhuǒr) - A very colloquial and informal synonym for 大家, common in northern China. It has a friendly, close-knit feeling.
• 我们 (wǒmen) - We / us. The first-person plural pronoun. Can sometimes overlap with 大家 if the speaker is including themself in the group being addressed.
• 都 (dōu) - All / both. The essential adverb that frequently follows 大家 to complete the meaning of “everyone all…”
• 集体 (jítǐ) - The collective; the group. This is the noun for the group itself, whereas 大家 is the pronoun for the people in it.