Expressing "all at once" with "yixiazi"

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一下子 (yīxiàzi) can be used as an adverb, meaning "all at once." Because it inherently encompasses a sense of "completion," it's typically going to be followed by a (le) later in the sentence.

Used as "All at Once"

一下子 (yīxiàzi) is a very informal expression to describe how fast things happened. It usually touches upon sudden or severe changes in a very short amount of time. Although 一下子 (yīxiàzi) is already quite informal, in colloquial Chinese 一下 (yīxià) can also be used to express the same thing.

Structure

Subj. + 一下子 + Predicate + 了

Examples

  • 天气 一下子 变 冷 Tiānqì yīxiàzi biàn lěng le.The weather suddenly got cold.
  • 一下子 三 碗 米饭 。yīxiàzi chī le sān wǎn mǐfàn.He ate three bowls of rice all at once.
  • 她 下楼 的时候 一下子 摔倒 Tā xiàlóu de shíhou yīxiàzi shuāidǎo le.As she went down the stairs, she suddenly fell.
  • 我们 说话 的 时候 ,她 一下子Wǒmen shuōhuà de shíhou, tā yīxiàzile.She burst into tears when we were talking.
  • 她 上 个 月 一下子 很 多 。Tā shàng gè yuè yīxiàzi shòu le hěn duō.Last month, she lost a lot of weight all at once.

Used as "Quickly" and "Naturally"

一下子 (yīxiàzi), followed with (jiù), usually implies that things happened very quickly, naturally, and easily. Again, 一下 (yīxià) can also be used instead of 一下子 (yīxiàzi).

Structure

Subj. + 一下子 + 就 + Predicate + 了

Examples

  • 老师 进来 以后 ,大家 一下子 安静 Lǎoshī jìnlái yǐhòu, dàjiā yīxiàzi jiù ānjìng le.Everyone became silent after the teacher came in.
  • 听 他 说 完 ,我 一下子 明白 Tīng tā shuō wán, wǒ yīxiàzi jiù míngbai le.After hearing him out, I understood everything all at once.
  • 他 是 最 高 的 ,我 一下子 看到 他 Tā shì zuì gāo de, wǒ yīxiàzi jiù kàndào tā le.He is the tallest. I spotted him right away.
  • 拍 完 那 部 电影 ,他 一下子 出名 Pāi wán nà bù diànyǐng, tā yīxiàzi jiù chūmíng le.He became very famous soon after that movie came out.
  • 看到 那 张 照片 ,我 一下子 想 起来 Kàndào nà zhāng zhàopiàn, wǒ yīxiàzi jiù xiǎng qǐlái le.It all came back to me when I saw that picture.

See also

Sources and further reading

Books