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Level

[B1](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/B1_grammar_points)

Similar to

- [Expressing "be going to" with "yao"](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Expressing_%22be_going_to%22_with_%22yao%22) (A1) - [Expressing "about to happen" with "le"](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Expressing_%22about_to_happen%22_with_%22le%22) (A2) - [Expressing "nearly" with "jihu"](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Expressing_%22nearly%22_with_%22jihu%22) (B2)

Used for

[Expressing time and date](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Expressing_time_and_date), [Sequencing events in time](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Sequencing_events_in_time), [Referring to changes of situation](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Referring_to_changes_of_situation)

Keywords

[就](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/%E5%B0%B1), [要](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/%E8%A6%81), [了](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/%E4%BA%86), [还有](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/%E8%BF%98%E6%9C%89)

Translations

[about](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/About)

[![Chinese-grammar-wiki-jiu.jpg](Expressing%20%22about%20to%22%20with%20%22jiuyao%22%20-%20Chinese%20Grammar%20Wiki_fichiers/300px-Chinese-grammar-wiki-jiu.jpg "fig:Chinese-grammar-wiki-jiu.jpg"){width="300" height="300"}](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/File:Chinese-grammar-wiki-jiu.jpg)

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.

Contents -------- [hide]([# "wikilink")\]

- [1 Basic Pattern](#Basic_Pattern "wikilink") - [1.1 Structure](#Structure "wikilink") - [1.2 Examples](#Examples "wikilink") - [2 Advanced Pattern](#Advanced_Pattern "wikilink") - [2.1 Structure](#Structure_2 "wikilink") - [2.2 Examples](#Examples_2 "wikilink") - [3 See also](#See_also "wikilink") - [4 Sources and further reading](#Sources_and_further_reading "wikilink") - [4.1 Books](#Books "wikilink") - [4.2 Websites](#Websites "wikilink")

Basic Pattern ----------------------------------------------------------------- ### Structure

(Subj. +) 就要 + Verb + 了 (，⋯⋯)

### Examples

- *就要* 下雨 **了** 。*Jiù yào* xiàyǔ **le**.It's about to rain! - 他们 *就要* 结婚 **了** 。Tāmen *jiù yào* jiéhūn **le**.They are about to get married. - 我 *就要* 出国 **了** 。Wǒ *jiù yào* chūguó **le**.I'm about to go abroad. - 宝宝 *就要* 一岁 **了** 。Bǎobao *jiùyào* yī suì **le**.The baby is about to be one-year old! - *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?

In this case, 就要 can be replaced by 快要 or 快. Advanced Pattern ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 (+ Subj.) + 就 (要) + Verb + 了

### Examples

- **还有** 十分钟我 *就* 下班 **了** 。**Háiyǒu** shí fēnzhōng wǒ *jiù* xiàbān **le**.I get off work in 10 minutes. - **还有** 两个星期我们 *就要* 考试 **了** 。**Háiyǒu** liǎng gè xīngqí wǒmen *jiù yào* kǎoshì **le**.We're just two weeks away from the exam date. - **还有** 一个月 *就要* 过年 **了** 。**Háiyǒu** yī gè yuè *jiù yào* guònián **le**.It will be Chinese New Year in another month. - **还有** 半个小时飞机 *就* 起飞 **了** 。**Háiyǒu** bàn gè xiǎoshí fēijī *jiù* qǐfēi **le**.The plane takes off in half an hour. - **还有** 五天 *就要* 放假 **了** 。**Háiyǒu** wǔ tiān *jiù yào* fàngjià **le**. I go on vacation in 5 days.

See also ------------------------------------------------------- - [Expressing "nearly" with "jihu"](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Expressing_%22nearly%22_with_%22jihu%22) - [Approximations with "chabuduo"](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Approximations_with_%22chabuduo%22) - [Expressing future with "jiang"](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Expressing_future_with_%22jiang%22) Sources and further reading --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ### Books - [Boya Chinese Elementary Starter 1 (博雅汉语初经起步篇)](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Boya_Chinese_Elementary_Starter_1_(%E5%8D%9A%E9%9B%85%E6%B1%89%E8%AF%AD%E5%88%9D%E7%BB%8F%E8%B5%B7%E6%AD%A5%E7%AF%87)) (pp. 183) [→buy](http://amzn.to/2hbyxKi) - [Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (3rd ed)](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Integrated_Chinese:_Level_1,_Part_1_(3rd_ed)) (pp. 267-8) [→buy](http://amzn.to/2xe9H5W) - [New Practical Chinese Reader 2 (新实用汉语课本2)](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/New_Practical_Chinese_Reader_2_(%E6%96%B0%E5%AE%9E%E7%94%A8%E6%B1%89%E8%AF%AD%E8%AF%BE%E6%9C%AC2)) (pp. 196-7) [→buy](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/7561911297/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=7561911297) - [40 Lessons for Basic Chinese Course (基础汉语40课上册）](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/40_Lessons_for_Basic_Chinese_Course_(%E5%9F%BA%E7%A1%80%E6%B1%89%E8%AF%AD40%E8%AF%BE%E4%B8%8A%E5%86%8C%EF%BC%89) (pp. 271) [→buy](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001FTL8D8/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B001FTL8D8&linkCode=as2&tag=allset-20) ### Websites - ChinesePod: [Qing Wen - 了 (le): Something's About to Happen](http://chinesepod.com/lessons/%E4%BA%86-le-somethings-about-to-happen) (free podcast content) \

[Category](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Special:Categories): - [B1 grammar points](https://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Category:B1_grammar_points)

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