Limiting scope with "jiu"

"Limiting scope" is like saying, "what I'm about to say applies to just this. You proceed the "this" with 就 (jiù) in this pattern.

Just "就"

"就” can be placed in the middle of the sentence to indicate the object or scope of the subject's activities such as observation, discussion, analysis, and explanation.

Basic Structure

Subj. + 就 + 活动的对象或者范围 + Verb + Obj.

Examples

• 两 国 领导人 就 环保 问题 交换 了 意见。Liǎng guó lǐngdǎorén jiù huánbǎo wèntí jiāohuàn le yìjiàn.The two leaders exchanged views on environmental issues.
• 我 就 这个 问题 说 两 点 我的 想法。Wǒ jiù zhège wèntí shuō liǎng diǎn wǒde xiǎngfǎ.I would like to make two points on this issue.
• 大家 就 中国 互联网的 发展 发表了 各自的 看法。Dàjiā jiù Zhōngguó hùliánwǎng de fǎ zhǎn fābiǎole gèzì de kànfǎ.Everybody expressed their own thoughts on China's internet development.
• 中国 主席 就 中国 最近的 经济 改革 做了 发言。Zhōngguó zhǔxí jiù Zhōngguó zuìjìn de jīngjì gǎigé zuòle fāyán.China's chairman made a statement on China's recent economic reforms.
• 来自 各 国 的 教育学者 们 就 什么 是 最好的 教育 方法 进行了 激烈的 讨论。Láizì gèguó de jiàoyù xuézhěmen jiù shénme shì zuì hǎo de jiàoyù fāngfǎ jìnxíngle jīliè de tǎolùn. Education experts from each and every country had a heated discussion on the best methods of education.

Pattern with "就"

Structure

就 (jiù) can be used to limit the scope of a comment, used in the following structure:

就 + Topic + (来说 / 而言) + Comment

This emphasizes that the speaker is just commenting on that particular topic and nothing else, like "just with regards to" in English. In this sense it is similar to 至于, but is generally used to introduce a new idea, rather than to move on from a previous related topic.

Note that in the pattern above, 来说 is more informal, and 而言 is more formal.

Examples

• 就 中国 的 独生子女 政策 而言，专家 各 有 各 的 看法。Jiù Zhōngguó de Dúshēngzǐnǚ Zhèngcè ér yán, zhuānjiā gè yǒu gè de kànfǎ.As for China's One Child Policy, every expert has their own opinion.
• 就 文化大革命 而言，大部分 的 人 都 认为 那 是 一 场 灾难。Jiù wénhuà dàgémìng ér yán, dà bùfèn de rén dōu rènwéi nà shì yī chǎng zāinàn.As for the Cultural Revolution, a large part of the people think it was a disaster.
• 就 整体 而言，这 幅 画 不错，但是 有 一些 细节 还是 要注意。Jiù zhěngtǐ ér yán, zhè fú huà bùcuò, dànshì yǒu yīxiē xìjié háishì yào zhùyì.As a whole, the painting is not bad, but there are some details that need to be noted.
• 就 这些 事情 来说，他 没有 错。Jiù zhèxiē shìqíng lái shuō, tā méiyǒu cuò.In regards to these sorts of things, he didn't do anything wrong.
• 就 我们家 来说，要求 还是 很多的，比如 晚上 十二点 以前 必须 回家。Jiù wǒmen jiā lái shuō, yāoqiú háishì hěn duō de, bǐrú wǎnshang shí'èr diǎn yǐqián bìxū huíjiā.For example, we have to be home before twelve o'clock in the evening.

When used in this sense, 就 is generally only used in written Chinese.

See also

• "With Regards to" as "zhiyu"
• "For…" with "eryan"
• Marking a Topic with "de hua"

Sources and Further Reading

• 现代汉语虚词例释 (pp. 306) 卓越汉语－公司实战篇 →buy

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