一…就…: as soon as / no sooner than
Meaning: as soon as / the moment … then … Expresses that one event happens immediately after another, with no gap.
Structure: Subject + 一 + V1 + 就 + V2
✅ 她一看到弟弟，就笑了起来。(The moment she saw her brother, she laughed.)
✅ 他一到家就开始做作业。(As soon as he got home, he started homework.)
Common mistakes:
- ❌ 他一就回家了。(cannot use 一/就 without verbs in each slot)
- 一 must be directly before V1; 就 must be directly before V2.
Contrast: 先…再 = first…then (planned sequence, not immediate); 等…再 = wait until…then (deliberate pause).
Worked examples
| Chinese | Pinyin | English | What it shows |
|---|---|---|---|
| 她一看到弟弟，就笑了起来。 | Tā yī kàn dào dì di, jiù xiào le qǐ lái. | The moment she saw her younger brother, she burst out laughing. | Minimal 一/就 frame: V1 (看到) triggers V2 (笑起来) with zero delay |
| 他一到家，就把外套挂起来，然后开始做饭。 | Tā yī dào jiā, jiù bǎ wài tào guà qǐ lái, rán hòu kāi shǐ zuò fàn. | As soon as he got home, he hung up his coat, then started cooking. | 一/就 captures the immediate first action on arrival; 然后 chains the next step |
| 这道菜一上桌，大家就争着去夹，不到两分钟就全吃完了。 | Zhè dào cài yī shàng zhuō, dà jiā jiù zhēng zhe qù jiā, bù dào liǎng fēn zhōng jiù quán chī wán le. | The moment the dish was served, everyone scrambled for it and it was all gone in under two minutes. | Longer context: 一上桌 triggers 争着去夹 immediately — the dramatic speed is key |
What you need first
Every topic in GraphChinese names its own prerequisites, and these are the grammar points this one is built on. If a sentence here will not parse, one of them is why.
一…就… is one topic of 829. GraphChinese teaches them in prerequisite order, so this pattern reaches you on the day everything it rests on is proven. The whole course, HSK 0 through HSK 6, is $49 once for lifetime access.
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