Basic Grammar: all 87 lessons free
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快要……了 — About To
「快要／快／就要／要……了」— 餐厅快要关门了
餐厅快要关门了, 地铁就要到了, 下个月我就要回美国了: four ways to say something is about to happen — and one rule about when the clock is in the sentence.
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Memory hook
快要 / 快 / 就要 / 要 + V + 了 = about to
Almost
The deck's three, in all four shapes, then David's day. Hear the 了 at the end of every one.
Tap any line to hear it
About to快要了
No pressure — just making it stick.
不好意思，餐厅____关门了。
Bù hǎoyìsi, cāntīng ____ Guānmén le.
Sorry, the restaurant is about to close.
It is pulling in. Which reply?
Next month I'm going back to the US.
Tap the tiles in order — it checks itself when the sentence is complete. Tap a placed tile to take it back.
Your sentence
明天学校____开学了。
Míngtiān xuéxiào ____ Kāixué le.
School starts tomorrow.
Your turn — say it
快要迟到了！
I'm about to be late!
手机要没电____，我先充一下。
Shǒujī yào méi diàn ____, wǒ xiān chōng yíxià.
My phone's about to die — let me charge it.
Finish each countdown with the right piece.
Tap a word to fill the next gap; tap a filled sentence to clear it. Every word is used once.
Word bank
0/5Almost, in pictures看图说快要
No pressure — just making it stick.
Four things from the deck that are about to happen. Match each picture, then say 快要……了.
Tap a picture, then choose its word. Picked wrong? Tap that picture and choose again. Match all the cards to finish.
Your turn — say it
不好意思，餐厅快要关门了。
Sorry, the restaurant is about to close.
Next week I take HSK4.
Tap the tiles in order — it checks itself when the sentence is complete. Tap a placed tile to take it back.
Your sentence
Your turn — say it
圣诞节就要来了！
Christmas is almost here!
This lesson's characters
快 itself, the closing door, and the exam next week.
fast; soon; happy
形meaning + sound
A heart 忄 and 夬 for the sound: the first meaning was a heart set free — glad, and 愉快, 快乐 still mean happy. A glad heart moves quickly, so 快 became fast — 跑得快 — and then soon: 快要……了, 快到了. One character for speed, nearness and joy; 快点儿 is hurry up, and 快乐 is the wish on every birthday.
to close; to turn off; a pass
会two ideas joined
The traditional 關 is a door 门 with a bolt and threads inside — the bar across a gate, closed. The simplified 关 dropped the door and kept the bolt. 关门 is to close the door or to shut up shop, 关灯 to turn off the light, 关机 to switch off the phone; 关系 is a connection, and 海关 is customs — the gate to a country. 餐厅快要关门了 — the bolt is about to slide.
to test; to take an exam
会two ideas joined
The top of 老, an old man, with a hooked stroke below: the first meaning was 'aged, a deceased father' — and from the respect owed to age came examination, the testing of what one knows. 考试 is an exam, 考HSK is to sit the HSK, 高考 the great university entrance exam. 下周我就要考HSK4了 — the old man is waiting with the paper.
Take these with you
Everything worth taking away. Tap any line to hear it.
Words 生词
Characters 汉字
Before you go课后回顾
- Narrate David's day from the deck — 8:00, 8:58, 11:50, 1:50, 4:45, 6:30, 7:30, 8:30, 10:00 — one 快要……了 per time. You will recognise yourself at least once.
- Look at your own calendar and say three things with 就要……了 and their dates. Saying the future out loud is how it starts to feel real.
- Remember the one rule: a named time wants 就要, never 快要. 明天就要开学了 — yes. 明天快要开学了 — no.