How's every little thing?

Status
Not open for further replies.

keannu

VIP Member
Joined
Dec 27, 2010
Member Type
Student or Learner
Native Language
Korean
Home Country
South Korea
Current Location
South Korea
105)How's every little thing?

How is this different from "How are you doing"? What does "little" mean here?
 

Raymott

VIP Member
Joined
Jun 29, 2008
Member Type
Academic
Native Language
English
Home Country
Australia
Current Location
Australia
That's not a normal sentence. Where did you find it?
"Every little thing" means "everything, no matter how small it is." It's not a way to say "How are you?"
 

Rover_KE

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Jun 20, 2010
Member Type
Retired English Teacher
Native Language
British English
Home Country
England
Current Location
England
What's '105)' for, keannu?
 

keannu

VIP Member
Joined
Dec 27, 2010
Member Type
Student or Learner
Native Language
Korean
Home Country
South Korea
Current Location
South Korea
Page number not to forget where to transcribe these explanations.
 

keannu

VIP Member
Joined
Dec 27, 2010
Member Type
Student or Learner
Native Language
Korean
Home Country
South Korea
Current Location
South Korea
from an American Drama drill book published by a Korean publisher.
 

riquecohen

VIP Member
Joined
Aug 24, 2010
Member Type
English Teacher
Native Language
American English
Home Country
United States
Current Location
Brazil
It's a very informal way of asking "How are things?" We don't hear it very much these days.
 

MikeNewYork

VIP Member
Joined
Nov 13, 2002
Member Type
Academic
Native Language
American English
Home Country
United States
Current Location
United States
It is used occasionally in AmE.
 

emsr2d2

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Jul 28, 2009
Member Type
English Teacher
Native Language
British English
Home Country
UK
Current Location
UK
It is not used at all in BrE.
 
Joined
Oct 11, 2014
Member Type
Retired English Teacher
Native Language
American English
Home Country
United States
Current Location
United States
In AmE, "How's every little thing?" is fairly common.... Often it is asked when two friends meet who haven't seen each other for a long time. When someone asks "How's every little thing?" it indicates that they're looking for a more detailed response than "Fine" (the traditional response to "How are you?"). They don't necessarily want a point-by-point recap of your life, but just a general update to get a conversation going.

For example:
Bob: "Fred! I haven't seen you in ages! Since you moved to Los Angeles for that new job, in fact."
Fred: "Yes, that was almost six years ago. I've moved back here now, working for Acme again."
Bob: "Well, it's great to see you. How's every little thing?"
Fred: "Oh, just fine, can't complain. My oldest son graduated from high school and stayed out West to attend U.C.L.A. My daughter just got her driver's license, so I promised her I'd help her buy a car after we got settled in here."
Bob: "Wow, they sure grow up fast, don't they? Where are you living, we've got to get together real soon...."
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top