German Phrase
Das machen alle.
Meaning
Literally “That do all,” the sentence means “Everyone does that” or “That’s what everyone does.” The word ‘das’ refers back to something just mentioned, while ‘alle’ is the subject meaning ‘all people.’
When to use
Use this phrase when you want to point out that a certain behaviour, habit or reaction is common to everybody. It’s a quick way to say that something is not unusual or that it’s a shared practice.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Dasmachenalle
Das (demonstrative pronoun)
Neuter nominative pronoun that points to a previously mentioned idea, object or situation.
machen (verb)
Infinitive form used here as a present‑tense verb; with a plural subject the verb takes the 3rd‑person plural ending –en.
alle (pronoun)
Indefinite pronoun meaning “everyone” or “all people”. It functions as the subject of the sentence.
🗨In Conversation
Ich trinke jeden Morgen Kaffee.
I drink coffee every morning.
Das machen alle.
Everyone does that.
✕Common Mistakes
Den machen alle.
‘Den’ is accusative masculine; the correct nominative neuter pronoun is ‘das’.
Das macht alle.
Verb must agree with the plural subject ‘alle’, so the correct form is ‘machen’.
Das machen allem.
‘Alle’ is the subject and stays in nominative; ‘allem’ is dative and would be wrong here.
↔Alternatives
Das tun alle.
Everyone does that.
Jeder macht das.
Everyone makes/does that.
Das ist üblich.
That’s common.
Cultural Tip
In German, ‘machen’ is a very generic verb and often replaces more specific verbs in casual speech. When you want to sound a bit more formal, you can swap ‘machen’ for ‘tun’ (Das tun alle). Also, remember that ‘das’ is neuter; if you’re referring to a masculine noun you would use ‘der’, and for feminine ‘die’.