<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?> <!DOCTYPE html> <html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xmlns:epub="http://www.idpf.org/2007/ops"> <head> <title>Comparing "gang" and "gangcai"</title> <link href="../Styles/main.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css"/> </head> <body> <h1>Comparing "gang" and "gangcai"</h1> <p>刚 (gāng) and 刚才 (gāngcái) are similar, but they differ on a few key uses.</p> <h2>Contents</h2> <div class="contents"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">1 刚 as "Just happened" </span></li> <ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">1.1 刚 before An Verb </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">1.2 刚 before An Adjective </span></li> </ul> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">2 刚才 as "Just Now" </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">3 刚 and 刚才 with 了 </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">4 刚 and 刚才 with 没 </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">5 Example Dialog </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">6 See also </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">7 Sources and further reading </span></li> <ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">7.1 Books </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">7.2 Dictionaries</span></li> </ul> </ul> </div> <h2>刚 as "Just happened"</h2> <p>刚 is actually an adverb, and it is placed in front of the verb. It emphasizes that the action just happened a short time ago. It is similar to the English "just." 刚刚 and 刚 are interchangeable in this case.</p> <p>The key here is that a short time ago is relative and determined by the speaker. For this reason, 刚 can indicate that something "just" happened 1 second ago, 5 minutes ago, 2 hours ago, 3 weeks ago, or even a year ago. The absolute time is flexible, but from the speaker's perspective, it feels recent.</p> <h2>刚 before An Verb</h2> <h3>A few examples:</h3> <div class="exemple"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">他 刚 到 。This gives the impression that not only did he just get here, but he should still be here. Tā gāng dào. He just arrived. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我们 昨天 刚 到 。 Wǒmen zuótiān gāng dào. We just arrived yesterday. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">真 不巧 ，老板 刚 走 。 Zhēn bùqiǎo, lǎobǎn gāng zǒu. What a bad coincidence. The boss just left.</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <p>It would be wrong to use 刚才 instead: </p> <div class="exemple"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">他 刚才 到 。 Tā gāngcái dào. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我们 昨天 刚才 到 。刚才 should be used for events a lot closer in time than 昨天. Wǒmen zuótiān gāngcái dào. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">真 不巧 ，老板 刚才 走 。 Zhēn bùqiǎo, lǎobǎn gāngcái zǒu.</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <p> And if you mean to say "When I first arrived in Shanghai," use 刚 instead of 刚才: </p> <div class="exemple"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我 刚 到 上海 的 时候 ，谁 都 不 认识 。 Wǒ gāng dào Shànghǎi de shíhou, shéi dōu bù rènshi. I didn't know anyone when I just came to Shanghai.</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <h2>刚 before An Adjective</h2> <p>刚, as an adverb, can also be placed in front of the verb, while 刚才 can't be used this way.</p> <h3>A few examples:</h3> <div class="exemple"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">天 刚 晴 。 Tiān gāng qíng. The sky just cleared up. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">他 的 感冒 刚刚 好 。 Tā de gǎnmào gānggāng hǎo. He just recovered from his cold. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">面包 刚 熟 ， 过 一会儿 再 吃 。 Miànbāo gāng shóu, guò yīhuìr zài chī. The bread just got done cooking. Eat in a little bit.</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <h2>刚才 as "Just Now"</h2> <p>刚才 is a time noun (like 今天 and 现在), and it expresses that the time that has passed is really short, in near-absolute terms. We're talking no more than 1-30 minutes, in most situations. If it is placed before the verb, it emphasizes what happened in the time that has just passed. It is similar to the English "just now."</p> <h3>A few examples:</h3> <div class="exemple"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">他 刚才 哭 了 。He was crying a moment ago but he stopped. Tā gāngcái kū le. He was crying just now. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我 刚才 看到 他 了 。Sounds like he's not here anymore; I just saw him, but don't see him now. Wǒ gāngcái kàndào tā le. I just now saw him. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">现在 我 感觉 比 刚才 好 一点 了 。 Xiànzài wǒ gǎnjué bǐ gāngcái hǎo yīdiǎn le. I feel a little better now than just before.</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <p>刚才, as a time noun, can directly modify a noun to indicate it is that one from "just now" or "just before," while 刚 can't be used this way.</p> <div class="exemple"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">刚 的 事情 太 让 人 生气 了 。 Gāng de shìqing tài ràng rén shēngqì le. What just happened is really upsetting. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">刚才 的 事情 太 让 人 生气 了 。 Gāngcái de shìqing tài ràng rén shēngqì le. What just happened is really upsetting.</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <h2>刚 and 刚才 with 了</h2> <p>You may have noticed that something interesting is going on with regards to 了 in the sentences with 刚 and 刚才. Namely, 了 is not usually required in sentences with 刚, but it is usually required in sentences with 刚才. This is because 刚才 refers to a time in the recent past, and you're usually indicated that something happened just now (started and finished).</p> <h3>Take these sentences for example:</h3> <div class="exemple"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我 昨天 看 了 。 Wǒ zuótiān kàn le. I looked at it yesterday. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我 刚才 看 了 。 Wǒ gāngcái kàn le. I looked at it just now.</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <p>So these are all simple time "subject + verb" sentences. Notice that when they refer to the past (including the one with 刚才), the action is completed and you need 了. You don't need 了 for things that haven't happened yet (they're just plans, and nothing is completed). And remember that 刚才 always refers to the past. </p> <h2>OK, now what about 刚? Why does it not need 了?</h2> <p>The key is that you don't need a 了 in a sentence with 刚 if the verb indicates a clear result. So, to use the 看 example from above:</p> <div class="exemple"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我 刚 看到 。Adding a 到 to 看 gives the verb a meaning of the result of "looking at." Wǒ gāng kàndào. I just saw it. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我 刚 看到 了 。了 is not needed here as 看到 includes the result of "looking at." Wǒ gāng kàndào le. I just saw it. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我 刚才 看到 了 。了 is needed here as 刚才 always refers to the past. Wǒ gāngcái kàndào le. I saw it just now.</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <h3>A few more examples:</h3> <div class="exemple"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">你 刚 知道 吗 ？The verb 知道 always includes the result of "knowing." Nǐ gāng zhīdào ma? You just found out? </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我 刚 听说 。The verb 听说 includes a clear enough indication of result. Wǒ gāng tīngshuō. I just heard. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">宝宝 刚 醒 。 Bǎobao gāng xǐng. The verb 醒 includes a clear enough indication of result. The baby just woke up. 刚 and 刚才 with 没</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <p>OK, so there's also something going on with 没 in sentences with 刚 and 刚才. The deal here is that you can say something didn't happen just now (刚才), but you can't say that something just didn't happen (刚). [Saying that something "just didn't happen" only works in English if you interpret "just" to mean "simply."] </p> <p>The takeaway? Just don't use 刚 in sentences where you use 没 to negate the past. </p> 我 刚 没 看到 。 Wǒ gāng méi kàndào. Don't use 刚 with 没 in the past. I just didn't see it. 我 刚 没 听懂 。 Wǒ gāng méi tīngdǒng. I didn't understand just now. <p>Use 没 with 刚才 to negate the past.</p> <div class="exemple"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我 刚才 没 看到 。 Wǒ gāngcái méi kàndào. I didn't see it just now. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">我 刚才 没 听懂 。 Wǒ gāngcái méi tīngdǒng. I didn't understand just now.</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <h3>Example Dialog</h3> <div class="exemple"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">A: 你 刚才 去 哪儿 了 ？ Nǐ gāngcái qù nǎr le? Where did you go just now? </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">B: 我 去 上 厕所 了 。刚 回来 。 Wǒ qù shàng cèsuǒ le. Gāng huílái. I went to the bathroom. I just got back. </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">A: 那 你 不 知道 刚才 的 事 吧 ？ Nà nǐ bù zhīdào gāngcái de shì ba? Then you don't know what happened just now? </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">B: 刚才 发生 了 什么 事 ？ Gāngcái fāshēng le shénme shì? What's just happened?</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <h3>See also</h3> <div class="See-also"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">"Just now" with "gangcai" "Just" with "gang"</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <h3>Sources and further reading</h3> <h4>Books</h4> <div class="See-also"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">现代汉语八百词（增订本） (pp. 216) [ →buy] </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">现代汉语虚词例释 (pp. 190) →buy </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">现代汉语八百词（增订本） (pp. 217) [ →buy] </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">对外汉语教学语法释疑201例 (pp. 28) [ →buy] </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 2 (3rd ed) (pp. 40- 2) →buy </span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 20px;">卓越汉语－公司实战篇 (pp. 239) [ →buy]</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> <h4>Dictionaries</h4> <div class="See-also"><ul><li><span style="font-size: 20px;">现代汉语词典（第5版） (pp. 446) →buy</span><br/></li> </ul> </div> </body> </html>