快/快要/就要/要…了 — “About To”
Before you read this, make sure you already know 了1, 了2, and 了3 — this article builds on 了2, the “new situation” 了, by adding a word up front that says the new situation is on its way.
Pair 快 kuài, 快要 kuàiyào, 就要 jiùyào, or 要 yào with a verb and 了2 at the end of the sentence, and you get “it’s about to happen” — the change of state hasn’t arrived yet, but it’s on the way.
1快 / 快要 / 就要 / 要 + V + 了2
Adding any of these four words in front of the verb, together with 了2 at the end, tells the listener the situation is going to change soon.
Quick Reference
| Word | Feel | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 快 kuài | Very soon, casual | Most colloquial of the four |
| 快要 kuàiyào | Soon | Slightly more neutral/written than 快 alone |
| 就要 jiùyào | Just about to | Often paired with a specific time word, e.g. 明天就要…了 |
| 要 yào | About to / going to | The most general and common of the four |
The 了2 at the end never disappears in this pattern — it’s the 了 that signals the change is happening. Without it, e.g. 他快睡覺 on its own isn’t a complete sentence.
2他睡觉了 vs 他睡了觉 vs 他快要睡觉了
Same core words, three different timings — this lines up everything from this article and the 了1/了2 articles side by side.
| Sentence | Meaning |
|---|---|
他睡覺了他睡觉了 |
He’s gone to sleep. (了2 — a new situation: he wasn’t sleeping, now he is) |
他睡了覺他睡了觉 |
He slept. (了1 — a completed action: the sleeping is over, he’s awake now) |
他快要睡覺了他快要睡觉了 |
He’s about to go to sleep. (快要…了2 — hasn’t happened yet, but it’s imminent) |
3Practice
Translate each sentence into Chinese, then tap the card to check your answer.
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