Comparing "dou" and "quan"

都 (dōu) and 全 (quán) both are adverbs that mean "all." Sometimes they can be used interchangeably, and sometimes they can even be used together as 全部 (quán dōu). Both words are used in informal and formal settings. Only 全 can be used as an adjective to mean "complete" or "entire." 都 is used in a wide variety of other grammar patterns which cannot use 全.

B1HSK3ASV4567

	都 (dōu)	全 (quán)
Meaning	all; at all; already	all; complete, entire
Part of Speech	adverb	adverb, adjective
Formality	flexible	flexible

:Yes

Both 都 (dōu) and 全 (quán) are adverbs that can mean "all"

As adverbs, 都 (dōu) and 全 (quán) are often interchangeable

• 问题 都 解决 了。 Wèntí dōu jiějué le.The problems are all solved.
• 因为 战争，这里 的 人 全 离开 了。 Yīnwèi zhànzhēng, zhèlǐ de rén quán líkāi le.Because of the war, all the people here left.
• 大家 全 来 了。 Dàjiā quán lái le.Everyone came.
• 电子 资料 和 纸质 资料 我 都 有。 Diànzǐ zīliào hé zhǐzhì zīliào wǒ dōu yǒu.I have all the information in both electronic and paper form.
• 我们 小区 周围 都 是 写字楼。 Wǒmen xiǎoqū zhōuwéi dōu shì xiězìlóu.Our neighborhood is surrounded by office buildings.

As adverbs, 都 (dōu) and 全 (quán) can be used together

For added emphasis, use them together as 全都.

• 披萨 他 全 都 吃 完 了。 Pīsà tā quán dōu chī wán le.He ate all of the pizza.
• 我们 全 都 是 上班族。Wǒmen quán dōu shì shàngbānzú.We are all nine-to-fivers.
• 漫威的 电影 我们 全 都 看 完 了。 Mànwēi de diànyǐng wǒmen quán dōu kàn wán le.We watched all of the Marvel movies.

全 can be used as an adjective to mean "complete" or "entire"

When used in this way, 全 comes before a noun, meaning "entire." 都 cannot be used this way.

Common Phrases

• 全 新 quán xīn all-new
• 全 熟quán shóu fully cooked
• 全 天 quán tiānall day
• 全 公司 quán gōngsīcompany-wide
• 全 国 quán guónationwide
• 全球quánqiúglobal
• 全 世界 quán shìjièworldwide

Example Sentences

• 这 台 电脑 是 全新 的。 Zhè tái diànnǎo shì quánxīn de.This computer is brand new.
• 我 要 一 份 全熟 的 牛排 。 Wǒ yào yī fèn quán shóu de niúpái.I'll have a steak, well done.
• 我 需要 全天 工作。 Wǒ xūyào quántiān gōngzuò.I need to work all day.
• 他 的 英文 非常 棒 ， 可以 去 参加 全国 比赛 。 Tā de Yīngwén fēicháng bàng, kěyǐ qù cānjiā quánguó bǐsài.His English is so good he could be in the national competition.
• 我们 公司 在 全球 都 有 工厂 。 Wǒmen gōngsī zài quánqiú dōu yǒu gōngchǎng.Our company has factories all over the world.
• 全 世界 的 人 都 很想 知道 大选 的 结果 。 Quánshìjiè de rén dōu hěn xiǎng zhīdào dàxuǎn de jiéguǒ.People all over the world are eager to know the results of the election.

都 (dōu) can emphasize "all" when there are many

都 is frequently used with 多 to emphasize that it's "a lot," and with 每 to emphasize "every." 全 is not used in this way. 全 is for emphasizing "entire," not "all" of many things.

• 很 多 人 都 喜欢 火锅。Hěn duō rén dōu xǐhuan huǒguō.A lot of people like hot pot.
• 很 多 人 全 喜欢 火锅。Hěn duō rén quán xǐhuan huǒguō.

• 我 每天 都 运动。Wǒ měi tiān dōu yùndòng.I exercise every single day.
• 我 每天 全 运动。Wǒ měi tiān quán yùndòng.

• 因为 疫情，很多 地方 都 关门 了。Yīnwèi yìqíng, hěn duō dìfang dōu guānmén le.Because of the pandemic, a lot of places closed.
• 因为 疫情，很多 地方 全 关门 了。Yīnwèi yìqíng, hěn duō dìfang quán guānmén le.

都 (dōu) has many different grammatical uses

The uses of 都 in grammar patterns are so varied that we will not attempt to list them all here. That's what the Chinese Grammar Wiki is for! But we'll give a few common uses of 都 that you are most likely to run into.

都 can be used with 每，covers the meanings of "each" and "every."See the Chinese Grammar Wiki entry.

• 我 每 个 星期六 都 去 游泳。 Wǒ měi gè xīngqīliù dōu qù yóuyǒng.I go swimming every Saturday.

都 can be used with 什么 to make 什么都, which means "everything." See the Chinese Grammar Wiki entry.

• 我 什么 都 喜欢。 Wǒ shénme dōu xǐhuan.I like everything.

都 can mean "already." In this usage there's also a 了. See the Chinese Grammar Wiki entry.

• 都 6 点 了 ！ dōu 6 diǎn le !It's 6 o'clock!

Combined with 一点 to make 一点都 (and followed by a negative), 都 can mean "not at all." See the Chinese Grammar Wiki entry.

• 我 一点 都 不 想 和 他 做 朋友 。 Wǒ yīdiǎn dōu bù xiǎng hé tā zuò péngyou.I don't want to be friends with him at all.

都 appears in quite a lot of grammar patterns, so you'll want to get familiar with those on the Chinese Grammar Wiki.

Sources and further reading

AllSet Learning Wikis

• Grammar patterns which use 都 (Chinese Grammar Wiki)

Websites

• 对外汉语教学：怎么区别“都”和“全”？ - Chinese Fever的文章 - 知乎