Comparing "cai" and "jiu"

Both 才 (cái) and 就 (jiù) are adverbs that have to do with expressing time, and they are both placed in front of the verb. However, they both have a different tone and feel, and they express different lengths of time.

Emphasis with 才

Expressing lateness with "cai"

才 expresses that the speaker thinks that the time that passed since the action takes place was a long time. Sometimes it expresses anxiety, impatience, anger etc.

Structure

Subj. ＋ Time ＋ 才 + Verb

Examples

• 我 等 了 两 个 小时 才 买到 票。 I had waited two hours before I bought the ticket.
• 老板 十一 点 才 到 办公室。The boss didn't come to the office until 11 o'clock.
• 这么 多 工作， 最少 要 花 两 个 月才 能 做完。.

Expressing small quantity with "cai"

“才”表示 only，放在时量短语或动量短语的动词前，强调数量少或者动量弱。

Structure

才 (＋Verb) ＋ Measure Word + Noun

Examples

• 他 才 才 十 岁，不能 让 他 喝 酒！.
• 我妈 才 四十 多 岁，可是 她 常常 说 “我已经老了”。.
• 我们 有 这么 多 人，你 才 点 了 三 个 菜。 We have so many people and you only ordered three dishes.
• 我 买 了 这么 多 衣服，才 花 了 五百 块 。 .
• 他们 已经 生孩子了，但是 他们 结婚 才 半年！ .

Emphasis with 就

就 is used to express earliness

就 indicates that something has occurred earlier than expected

Structure

Subj. + Time + 就 + Verb + Obj.＋了

Examples

• 他 下午 四点 就 吃 晚饭 了。He ate dinner at four in the afternoon.
• 她 十九 岁 就 结婚 了。She got married when she was 19.
• 我 八点 就 出门 了，路 上 堵车，我 迟到 了 十 分钟。I left at eight, but there was a traffic jam. I was ten minutes late.
• 你们 这么 早 就 下班 了？Why are you guys leaving work so early?
• 你 妹妹 十五岁就 上大学 了？Your younger sister went to college when she was only fifteen?

就 is used to express small quantity

“就”表示 only，放在加时量短语或动量短语的动词前，强调数量少或者动量弱。

Structure

Subj. + 就 + (＋Verb) ＋ Measure Word ＋ Noun

Examples

• 我们 有 这么 多 人，你 就 点 了 三 个 菜？.
• 你们 每天 就 睡 四 个 小时？ Do you only sleep four hours every day?
• 那时候 中国人 都 生 四 五 个 孩子，他们 家 就 生 一 个？She got married when she was 19.
• 你 这么 大 一个 男人，就 吃 这么 一 小 碗饭？！.
• 每 个 人 都 写 了 五页 纸，你 就 写 了 一 页 纸！.

See also

• Expressing lateness with "cai"
• Expressing earliness with "jiu"
• "cai" used for small numbers
• "Just" with "jiu"
• Emphasis with "jiu"
• Expressing "as one likes" with "jiu"
• Expressing indifference with "jiu"
• Limiting scope with "jiu"

Sources and further reading

Books

• Chinese Grammar - Broken down into 100 items - Basic and Intermediate Levels (汉语语法百项讲练 - 初中级) (p. 107) →buy