Expressing "all the way until" with "zhidao"

直到 (zhídào) can only be used to describe a time frame that began in the past and continued until a point closer to the present. It is like the English phrase, "all the way until." It can be used in an affirmative or negative form, expressing that something has taken a while or is late. The word 才 (cái) often teams up with 直到, and serves to emphasize the lateness aspect.

Affirmative Form

Structure

直到 + Time / Event ，Subj. + 才 ⋯⋯

This subject can also be place before 直到.

Examples

• 直到 十二 点 半 ，我 才 做 完 作业 。Zhídào shí'èr diǎn bàn, wǒ cái zuò wán zuòyè.It wasn't until twelve thirty in the morning that I finished homework.
• 直到 半 个 月 以后 ，我 的 感冒 才 好 。Zhídào bàn gè yuè yǐhòu, wǒ de gǎnmào cái hǎo.It took me half a month to recover from the cold.
• 她 直到 十八 岁 才 见到 亲生 父母 。Tā zhídào shíbā suì cái jiàndào qīnshēng fùmǔ.It wasn't until she was eighteen that she met her biological parents.
• 我 直到 大学 毕业 才 开始 独立 生活 。Wǒ zhídào dàxué bìyè cái kāishǐ dúlì shēnghuó.It wasn't until I graduated from college that I started living independently.
• 直到 去 了 北京 ，他 才 知道 一个人 在 大 城市 多 辛苦 。Zhídào qù le Běijīng, tā cái zhīdào yīgèrén zài dà chéngshì duō xīnkǔ.It wasn't until he went to Beijing that he understood how hard it is to be alone in a big city.

Negative Form

Structure

直到 + Time / Event ，Subj. + 都 + 不 / 没 ⋯⋯

Examples

• 直到 他 死 ，我们 都 没 见 过 。Zhídào tā sǐ, wǒmen dōu méi jiàn guo.We didn't meet until he passed away.
• 他们 是 同学 ，但是 直到 毕业 ，都 没 说 过 话 。Tāmen shì tóngxué, dànshì zhídào bìyè, dōu méi shuō guo huà.They are classmates. But they had never spoken until they graduated.
• 直到 电影 结束 ，他 都 没 来 。Zhídào diànyǐng jiéshù, tā dōu méi lái.He didn't show up until the movie was over.
• 直到 我 弟弟 上 大学 ，他 都 不 会 洗 衣服 。Zhídào wǒ dìdi shàng dàxué, tā dōu bù huì xǐ yīfu.My younger brother couldn't wash clothes until he went to college.
• 我 认识 他 一年 多 了 ，直到 现在 ，我 都 不 知道 他 的 全名 。Wǒ rènshi tā yī nián duō le, zhídào xiànzài, wǒ dōu bù zhīdào tā de quánmíng.I've known him for over a year, but I still don't know his full name.

See also

• Expressing "when" with "dengdao"
• Complement with "dao"