<p>从来 in modern Chinese is more like "never". It is always used with other negative word like 不 or 没有. In ancient Chinese it does means "always" but nowadays nobody use this original meaning. </p>

<p>So it is not common to say " I always buy oranges " as "我从来买橘子" in Chinese. You can say " 我 经常/一直 买橘子"</p>

<p>But when you try to say " I've never bought orange" in Chinese. You can say: "我从来没买过橘子"</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-12-12T20:09:32.097Z
从来 can be used with positive sentences, it is just (much) rarer
user238264
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2013-12-12T20:12:19.543Z
@user238264 yes that's why I said "in modern Chinese". In LU XUN's novel "狂人日记" he asked:"从来如此 便对吗?". But this is not modern Chinese. So I think for the non-native speaker, it is much easier to just get the meaning which is common used.
Archeosudoerus
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2013-12-12T20:14:15.967Z
And it can be used that way in modern Chinese, the dictionary I cited in my post gives several examples, one of which is from a newspaper, and another from 毛泽东
user238264
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2013-12-12T20:17:21.237Z
@user238264 毛泽东 is not using "modern Chinese", he was educated in traditional private school.
Archeosudoerus
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2013-12-12T20:19:31.207Z
Then I think we disagree about what the word modern means.  To me, if an utterance is made by a speaker within one or two generations of the current era, then that utterance is part of the modern usage of the language.  Just as expressions such as "ad hoc" are part of modern English, even though they have their roots in Latin.
user238264
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2013-12-12T20:25:58.823Z
I hope you can look at this one: http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%8B%82%E4%BA%BA%E6%97%A5%E8%AE%B0       But even this book is not written in "modern Chinese".
Archeosudoerus
CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-12-12T22:31:22.633Z
There is no agreed-upon definition of Modern Chinese. There is really no point arguing over this. I would opt for words like 'current usage', which restricts the scope to how a word/phrase is used as at the time the answer is written.
deutschZuid
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2013-12-12T22:40:52.220Z
Using 从来 in positive sentence sounds natural to me and I just asked a few friends who feel the same way. E.g. “我从来都是先吃饭再喝汤。”“他每天一起床就喝咖啡，从来都是这样。”
NS.X.
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2013-12-12T23:45:10.233Z
+1 to @NS.X 's comment. 从来 is indeed more frequently associated with 不. However, 从来都, as a positive expression, is very native to me.
Mingjing Zhang
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2013-12-13T08:37:35.923Z
Agree with @MingjingZhang. It sounds completely natural to say 我从来都买橘子.
user58955
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2013-12-12T20:07:08.627Z
2013-12-12T20:07:08.627Z
Archeosudoerus
<p>Without 都, 从来 does not mean always. 从来 actually means from (从) past till present (来). It is obvious where the <code>always</code> come from by looking at the example given by NS.X:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>他每天一起床就喝咖啡，从来都是这样。</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Everyday, he drinks coffee when he wakes up. From past till present, it has always been like this.</p>

<pre><code>每天      他  喝    咖啡   就      一起床     从           来           都     是   这样
</code></pre>

<p>See grammar usage <a href="http://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/%22Always%22_with_%22conglai%22">here</a>.</p>

<p>If you want to say "I always buy oranges", you can try using 向来都 instead. For example:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>我向来都是买橘子的。</p>
</blockquote>

<p>向来 means all along.
都 makes it always.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-12-13T01:23:51.140Z
2013-12-13T01:23:51.140Z
杨以轩
<p>it is more like the word 'ever' in (old) English, whose meaning changes as the word going with it changes, like <em>forever</em>(for ever) and <em>not...ever</em> (or <em>never</em> in its abbr. form)  .</p>

<p>In this case, 从来都=forever/always, 从来不=not...ever.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-12-19T07:58:27.143Z
2013-12-19T07:58:27.143Z
Joseph S WU
<p>According to 现代汉语虚词词典, 从来 always means always (given that always + a negative + ... = never + ...) and it can be used in the following ways:</p>

<ol>
<li>从来+没【有】/不+动词短语</li>
<li>从来+没/不+形容词短语+【过】</li>
<li>从来 as a 副词 in a positive sentence</li>
<li>occasionally it can function as a 定语.</li>
</ol>

<p>In my experience it is much more commonly used with negative sentences.  So, if you want to use always in a positive sentence, such as "I always buy oranges," it may sound more natural to use some other way to express always.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-12-12T20:01:52.523Z
2013-12-12T20:12:41.270Z
2013-12-12T20:12:41.270Z
user238264
<p>Does anyone know if 从来 translates to "always"? And if it is, is it used in the same way?
For example if I want to say: "I always buy oranges", would that be “我从来买橘子”？</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-12-12T19:39:45.870Z
http://www.yellowbridge.com/chinese/sentsearch.php?word=%E4%BB%8E%E6%9D%A5 maybe someone more proficient can give more advice about whether it only makes sense in certain contexts etc
Cocowalla
<translation>
Does 从来 translate to "always"?
# Does 从来 translate to "always"?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2013-12-12)

Does anyone know if 从来 translates to "always"? And if it is, is it used in the same way?
For example if I want to say: "I always buy oranges", would that be “我从来买橘子”？

**Tags:** translation

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: http://www.yellowbridge.com/chinese/sentsearch.php?word=%E4%BB%8E%E6%9D%A5 maybe someone more proficient can give more advice about whether it only makes sense in certain contexts etc  

---

## 4 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2013-12-12. Score: -5 | Accepted answer

从来 in modern Chinese is more like "never". It is always used with other negative word like 不 or 没有. In ancient Chinese it does means "always" but nowadays nobody use this original meaning.

So it is not common to say " I always buy oranges " as "我从来买橘子" in Chinese. You can say " 我 经常/一直 买橘子"

But when you try to say " I've never bought orange" in Chinese. You can say: "我从来没买过橘子"

> **Comments:**
> **username_3**: 从来 can be used with positive sentences, it is just (much) rarer  
> **username_2**: @username_3 yes that's why I said "in modern Chinese". In LU XUN's novel "狂人日记" he asked:"从来如此 便对吗?". But this is not modern Chinese. So I think for the non-native speaker, it is much easier to just get the meaning which is common used.  
> **username_3**: And it can be used that way in modern Chinese, the dictionary I cited in my post gives several examples, one of which is from a newspaper, and another from 毛泽东  
> **username_2**: @username_3 毛泽东 is not using "modern Chinese", he was educated in traditional private school.  
> **username_3**: Then I think we disagree about what the word modern means.  To me, if an utterance is made by a speaker within one or two generations of the current era, then that utterance is part of the modern usage of the language.  Just as expressions such as "ad hoc" are part of modern English, even though they have their roots in Latin.  
> **username_2**: I hope you can look at this one: http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%8B%82%E4%BA%BA%E6%97%A5%E8%AE%B0       But even this book is not written in "modern Chinese".  
> **username_4**: There is no agreed-upon definition of Modern Chinese. There is really no point arguing over this. I would opt for words like 'current usage', which restricts the scope to how a word/phrase is used as at the time the answer is written.  
> **username_5**: Using 从来 in positive sentence sounds natural to me and I just asked a few friends who feel the same way. E.g. “我从来都是先吃饭再喝汤。”“他每天一起床就喝咖啡，从来都是这样。”  
> **username_6**: +1 to @NS.X 's comment. 从来 is indeed more frequently associated with 不. However, 从来都, as a positive expression, is very native to me.  
> **username_7**: Agree with @username_6. It sounds completely natural to say 我从来都买橘子.  

---

### Answer by username_8 on 2013-12-13. Score: 7

Without 都, 从来 does not mean always. 从来 actually means from (从) past till present (来). It is obvious where the `always` come from by looking at the example given by NS.X:

> 他每天一起床就喝咖啡，从来都是这样。

Everyday, he drinks coffee when he wakes up. From past till present, it has always been like this.

```
每天      他  喝    咖啡   就      一起床     从           来           都     是   这样

```

See grammar usage [here](http://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/%22Always%22_with_%22conglai%22).

If you want to say "I always buy oranges", you can try using 向来都 instead. For example:

> 我向来都是买橘子的。

向来 means all along.
都 makes it always.


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### Answer by username_9 on 2013-12-19. Score: 2

it is more like the word 'ever' in (old) English, whose meaning changes as the word going with it changes, like *forever*(for ever) and *not...ever* (or *never* in its abbr. form) .

In this case, 从来都=forever/always, 从来不=not...ever.


---

### Answer by username_3 on 2013-12-12. Score: 1

According to 现代汉语虚词词典, 从来 always means always (given that always + a negative + ... = never + ...) and it can be used in the following ways:

1. 从来+没【有】/不+动词短语
2. 从来+没/不+形容词短语+【过】
3. 从来 as a 副词 in a positive sentence
4. occasionally it can function as a 定语.

In my experience it is much more commonly used with negative sentences. So, if you want to use always in a positive sentence, such as "I always buy oranges," it may sound more natural to use some other way to express always.


---

