HSK 3
刚才
gāngcái
moments ago
Structure
Subject + 刚才 + Verb / 刚才 + Subject + Verb
How it works
The word '刚才' is a time noun meaning 'just now' or 'a moment ago'. It refers to the time shortly before the present moment and can be used as a temporal modifier before the verb or at the beginning of the sentence.
Examples
我刚才去超市了。
Wǒ gāngcái qù chāoshì le.
I went to the supermarket just now.
刚才谁给你打电话了？
Gāngcái shéi gěi nǐ dǎ diànhuà le?
Who called you a moment ago?
妈妈刚才在厨房做饭。
Māma gāngcái zài chúfáng zuòfàn.
Mom was cooking in the kitchen just now.
Common mistakes
Do not use '刚才' with '才' in the same clause to mean 'just happened'; '刚才' is a point in time, while '刚' is an adverb.
Tip
Since '刚才' is a noun, you can use it after a preposition like '从' (e.g., 从刚才到现在 - from just now until now), which you cannot do with the adverb '刚'.
More HSK 3 grammar
See 刚才 in real Chinese
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