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Have you ever been confused by Just, Yet and Already?
These three adverbs can be confusing but we're here to fix that.
Are you ready? Let's go!
Welcome to The Coffee Break English Show.
I'm Nic and I'm Francesca.
How are you today, Francesca?
I'm very well, Nic.
Thank you. How are you?
Really good, yeah. I'm looking forward to this lesson.
Yes! Let's get started!
Absolutely. So, today we're looking at just, yet and already, and these are common adverbs that we use very often with the present perfect.
Yes, that's true! But the position and the choice between one or the other, at times, for us, not native speakers can be a little bit confusing.
Can you help us? Absolutely.
It might be a difficult topic but I'm sure by the end of this episode things will be a little bit clearer.
I'm sure you'll make it very easy for us, as always.
So let's start with Just. Okay.
Just is used for very recent actions and it goes between the auxiliary, so in the present perfect that's have or has and the past participants.
Right. And a good example could be, well I've just finished my Italian homework.
Oh well done you. Thank you.
I think I did well with it.
I'll have a look after so I have just finished my Italian homework and we cannot place just anywhere else in the sentence is that right?
Just is fixed there between the and the mainboard. Okay, so it's one of those rules that we can memorise and always use it in the same way.
Exactly. Okay. And one thing we do need to be careful with, have you ever heard an American using just?
Yeah, now that you're saying that, I noticed, like, I watch a lot of series and when the accent or the actor is American, is that right, they tend to use just with the simple past rather than the past partici….
The present perfect?
Exactly! Yeah absolutely!
They tend to use the past simple with just whereas in British English it's rare that you hear someone using this one.
Okay, so it's a difference between the British English and American English?
Exactly! Okay, it's good to know!
Yeah, they might say I just had a coffee.
Okay okay And shall we look at yet?
Right. So yet is used for something that hasn't happened yet but we expect it to happen in the future.
The position of yet is actually at the end.
Okay so we cannot use it in between the auxiliary and the past participle.
Always comes at the end so it's another rule that we can.
okay okay We use it in questions and in negative forms but we don't really use it in positive forms. Okay I think I always hear children saying are we there yet?
Are we there? Exactly yeah, absolutely.
And another good example I haven't finished the book I'm reading yet I still have five more chapters to read.
Right okay so we can see yet at the very end of this sentence.
Yeah or in a question have you downloaded our coffee break English workbooks?
Oh that looks lovely.
You can find this in the description and a link to the pdf version of workbook.
I will download it very soon.
Very useful and there's some good present perfect helping there.
Okay I am looking forward to that.
So we move on to already.
Okay. So already indicates that something happened earlier than expected.
Right. It just means before now.
The structure of already is a bit different, it's more flexible.
Okay which means we can place it in different parts of the sentence?
Oh, that's good news.
Yeah, it's a nice one.
And it's, it follows the same rule as just that we can put it between the auxiliary and the main verb.
Okay. But we can also put it in the same place as yet, at the end of a sentence.
Oh right. There's a slight difference in the, how strong already is if it's at the end, it indicates a lot more surprise.
Okay... I didn't know that.
Yeah. Can we see an example?
So I can say, I have already seen this movie.
Okay. Or I can say, I've seen this movie already.
I see what you mean.
So you're kind of annoyed or disappointed in a way.
Exactly. Maybe someone's given me a suggestion of a film to watch. No, I can't.
Ah, I see. This is interesting.
This is something new for me.
We can also use it in questions to emphasize surprise.
Okay. So we could say, have you seen this movie already?
Ah, and you could also say have you already seen this movie obviously?
Yes, exactly. But that's more emphatic.
Exactly. I see. Um, we can remember here that the more natural form would be yet.
So if we use already, we're emphasizing how strong a surprise is here.
Okay, okay. So I think we're already at the point where we can do the quiz, Francesca.
I love a quiz, let's do it.
Great, so what we can do is, I will say a sentence.
Okay. And I will leave a space where you can put just, yet or already.
Okay. And if you're watching or listening, you can pause the podcast and try and guess which one is right.
And help me as well.
So are you ready? Okay, let's see the first one.
So, number one. Do you want to watch Avatar?
No, I've seen it three times.
Okay, so no, I've seen it three times something that has already happened.
So, I've already seen it three times and if I'm a bit disappointed can I say I've seen it three times already?
Brilliant! And, number two.
Okay. «Has she replied to your message...» «Has she replied to your message...yet ?» Great!
Exactly. It's that one that goes at the end.
And ready for number three?
Number three. Let's see this one.
«Why do you look so tired?
I've been for a run .» Okay.
So, in this case, I've just been for a run.
Yeah it happened very recently and now there's a clear effect of the answer.
Okay, and in American English it would be, I just was for a run, or it sounds a bit odd, doesn't it?
Yeah I just went for a run.
Okay, okay. I just went.
So we could still use the simple past, but just a different verb, if that makes sense.
Okay, great. Fantastic.
So you performed really well on that quiz Francesca.
Thank you. But shall we just do a quick review?
Yeah, let's go through all these adverbs one more time.
So starting with just, we said just is for very recent actions and we put it before the main verb and after the auxiliary verb.
So in between? Yeah.
Okay. Yet we use to say that something hasn't happened yet but we expect it to happen in the future.
Okay. It goes at the end.
At the end. Really important.
Let's remember this, at the end.
And also, it only goes in negatives and questions normally.
And finally, already...
Already. it's the flexible one.
It means that something happens sooner than we've been for a run.
Okay, so in this case, I've just been for a run.
Yeah it happened very recently and now there's a clear effect.
Okay and in American English it would be, I just was for a run?
Or it sounds a bit odd?
Yeah I just went for a run.
Okay I just went, so we could still use the simple past but just a different verb.
That makes sense, okay great!
Fantastic so you performed really well on that quiz, Francesca!
Thank you! So we just did a quick review.
Yeah, let's go through all these adverbs one more time.
So, starting with just. We said just is for very recent actions and we put it before the main verb and after the auxiliary verb.
So, in between. And thank you for watching and listening!
Until next time, happy coffee breaking!
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