Expressing "about to" with "jiuyao"

就要 (jiùyào) is similar to 快要 (kuàiyào), meaning "about to." They are interchangeable in some cases. But there is a major difference that you need to take a good look at.

Situations where both can be used

Colloquially, you can just say 快 instead of 快要. But 就要 can't be used that way.

Structure

快（要） / 就（要） + Verb Phrase + 了

Examples

• 我 快 饿 死 了。Wǒ kuài è sǐ le.I'm about to starve to death.
• 他 快要 去 美国 了。Tā kuài yào qù Měiguó le.He's about to go to the USA.
• 快要 下 雨 了！Kuài yào xià yǔ le!It's about to rain!
• 他们 就要 结婚 了。Tāmen jiù yào jiéhūn le.They are about to get married.
• 就要 下课 了，还有 别的 问题 吗？Jiù yào xiàkè le, háiyǒu bié de wèntí ma?The class is almost over. Are there any other questions?

Situations where only "就要" can be used

快要 (kuài yào) is generally "about to" [happen], but 就要 (jiù yào) could be used to mark a more specific time. 要 (yào) here can be omitted. For this one, you wouldn't normally use "about to" for this English translation, but the feeling is nevertheless that the impending event is coming up fast.

Structure

还有 + Time Period + 就（要） + Verb Phrase + 了

Examples

• 还有 十 天 宝宝 就 一 岁 了。Háiyǒu shí tiān bǎobǎo jiù yī suì le.In ten more days, the baby will be one year old.
• 还有 十 分钟 就 下班 了。Háiyǒu shí fēnzhōng jiù xiàbān le.In 10 more minutes I get off work.
• 还有 五 天 就要 放假 了。Háiyǒu wǔ tiān jiù yào fàngjià le.In 10 more days, I go on vacation.
• 还有 一 个 月 就要 过年 了。Háiyǒu yī gè yuè jiù yào guònián le.In another month it will be Chinese New Year.
• 还有 两 个 星期 就要 考试 了。Háiyǒu liǎng gè xīngqí jiù yào kǎoshì le.We're just two weeks away from the test date.

See also

• "Nearly" with "jihu"
• Approximations with "chabuduo"
• Expressing future with "jiang"

Sources and further reading

Books

• Boya Chinese Elementary Starter 1 (博雅汉语初经起步篇) (p.183)→buy
• Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (3rd ed) (pp. 267-8) →buy
• New Practical Chinese Reader 2 (新实用汉语课本2) (pp. 196-7) →buy
• 40 Lessons for Basic Chinese Course (基础汉语40课上册） (p. 271)→buy

Websites

• ChinesePod: Qing Wen - 了 (le): Something's About to Happen (free podcast content)