就 / Essence of Mandarin

 

 
 
_THIS IS A TESTING BETA VERSION OF THE SITE_
 

Condition (or action) A is fulfilled, action B follows

In the first part of a sentence we say what was, is or needs to be fulfilled, so that action B in the second part of a sentence can take place.

In the second sentence with 就 /jiù/ we say what action followed or will follow.

EXAMPLES

Good music often isn’t “love at the first hearing”.
好 的 音乐 常常 不 是 你 第一次 听 就 喜欢。
Hǎo de yīnyuè chángcháng bùshì nǐ dì yī cì tīng jiù xǐhuan.
After I finish drinking this tea, I’m going to have a class.
我 喝 了 这个 茶，就 要 去 上课。
<Wǒ hē le zhège chá, jiù yào qù shàngkè.>
When one lacks self-confidence, then he (she) can't solve complex problems.
缺乏 自信 就 无法 解决 复杂 的 问题。
Quēfá zìxìn jiù wúfǎ jiějué fùzá de wèntí.
WORDS 信 SIMPLE - COMPLICATED
If you like it then buy it.
你 喜欢 就 买 吧！
Nǐ xǐhuan jiù mǎi ba
The more (time) you study, the better the results.
你 学习 的 时间 越 多，成就 就 越 好 了。
Nǐ xuéxí de shíjiān yuè duō, chéngjiù jiù yuè hǎo le.
成 BECOME 间 SPACE 时 TIME
If you don't want to go, then don't go.
你 不 想 去 就 别 去！
Nǐ bùxiǎng qù jiù bié qù.

 

Time passed, action follows

In the first part of the sentence we say how long time is needed for the action to take place.

Second part with 就 /jiù/ tells us what action will follow after the time is fulfilled.

EXAMPLES

It takes ten minutes to get there.
十 分钟 就 到 了。
Shí fēnzhōng jiù dào le.
TO ARRIVE

 

Space passed, action follows

In the first part of the sentence we say how long space needs to be crossed.

Second part with 就 /jiù/ tells us what action will follow after the space is crossed.

EXAMPLES

100 metres and (you) are there.
一百 米 就 到 了。
Yībǎi mǐ jiù dào le.
TO ARRIVE

 

Emphasis

EXAMPLES

I'm (just) loving it! - slogan of McDonald's
我 就 喜欢！
Wǒ jiù xǐhuan!
We entered the information age long time ago.
我们 早就 进入 了 信息 时代。
Wǒmen zǎo jiù jìnrù le xìnxī shídài.
WORDS 信 TO ENTER
I’ve known this for a long time that this is an old traditional concept.
我 早 就 知道 这 是 旧的 传统 观念。
Wǒ zǎo jiù zhīdào zhè shì jiù de chuántǒng guānniàn.
NEW - OLD

被 / “BY
让 / LET ME MAKE YOU ANGRY
GRAMMAR
MATERIALS