外国语中心

Chinese grammar learning: the use of 就(jiù)

In Chinese language, the character就(jiù)  is one of those very common parts of Chinese grammar that many students find confused. It says that 就 (jiù) doesn't have a corresponding meaning in English, but, frustratingly, that's all it says about it. What is the role of 就(jiù) in a Chinese sentence, and how is it needed and used in a more general sense in Mandarin?

1. Where should I place 就 in a sentence?

He can go home as soon as we finish studying this lesson.

As soon as I speak he’ll laugh.

I came here as early as 8 o’clock.

2. How do I use 就 to imply an action takes place earlier than I have expected?

就 can be placed after a time word to comment on the time which is earlier than you have expected.

He came to school as early as nine o'clock.

Comparing with 他九点来了学校. He came to school at 9.

3. Can 就 be used to imply anything else apart from “earlier than expected”?

就 can also be used to indicate that a preceded number word is a small number.

It only takes two people to complete the job.

This sentence implies that the job is an easy one, and it only takes two people to complete.  The speaker thinks two is a small number. 两个人能办好. It takes two people to complete the job. The speaker states a fact. The sentence has neither implicated the easiness nor the size of the number, which the above one has.

4. Can 就 be used for other purposes?

就 can also be used for emphasis.

就 is used in the following sentence constructions.

The following example shows that 就 is used to indicate that first action is immediately followed by second action.

He went to the library after the class.

就 can also be used to indicate that as soon as the first action takes place, the second action will happen. The following pattern indicates that as soon as the action in the 一clause takes place, then it will be followed by the action which is in the 就 clause. Both 一 and 就 are adverbs, which should be placed before verbs. This pattern is often seen in a four-character expression.

A soon as he speaks I’ll start crying.

The difference between the above two examples is that the second example can be used for general descriptions, but the first is for a particular situation.