The 一 ... 就 pattern in Chinese grammar (yī ... jiù): as soon as, once, whenever
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The 一 … 就 pattern (yī … jiù) is very common in Chinese grammar. It’s used to say things like “as soon as”, “once” and “whenever”, so it’s a very useful and important structure to know.
The basic structure is:
This is equivalent to saying “As soon as [subject] does [action], they do [another action]” or “whenever [subject] does [action], they do [another action]”.
You can also use this structure with two different subjects. In that case, the second subject just goes before 就. This will seem natural once you see it in the example sentences below.
Let’s have a look at the slightly different meanings this structure can have one by one.
一 … 就: “as soon as”
Perhaps the most common use of the 一 … 就 pattern is to say “as soon as”. You just put the first event or action after 一, and the following event or action after 就.
Have a look at some example sentences:
Notice how the actions are put into the same slots in each of the sentences: 一 [first action] 就 [second action].
一 … 就: “once” or “when”
Using 一 … 就 to mean “once” or “when” is actually very similar to using it to mean “as soon as”. It’s just an alternative translation in English. The meaning is the same. In all cases, this pattern is about doing one thing immediately after another.
Some examples:
In all of the above example sentences, “as soon as”, “once” and “when” are pretty much interchangeable as translations.
一 … 就: “whenever”
Finally, this pattern can also be used to express “whenever”. This is used to talk about habitual actions that happen whenever some other event or action happens.
Let’s have a look at some example sentences:
Hopefully you can see the common theme for using 一 … 就. It’s always about things that happen right after or because of other events.
See also:
- Events in quick succession with “yi… jiu” - Chinese Grammar Wiki
- As Soon As - Saying As Soon As In Mandarin Chinese With Yi - Jiu - About.com
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- Vocabulary list: The 一 ... 就 pattern in Chinese grammar (yī ... jiù): as soon as, once, whenever 语法：就、一 54 words and 9 example sentences
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