How to use 才
Subj. + Time + 才 + Verb
才 can present an event as occurring later than expected or only once a particular time was reached. Put the time expression before 才 and the action after it. English often uses “not until” to express the same timing judgment, although the Chinese clause need not contain an ordinary negative marker.
The expectation may concern a clock time, an age, or another point in a process. It reflects the speaker's assessment rather than an absolute rule about what counts as late. Simple beginner examples often omit final 了, but that is not a general ban on every combination of 才 and 了. Other constructions give 才 a small-quantity meaning, so identify what the sentence evaluates.
Examples with pinyin and English
我昨天晚上十一点才到家。
I didn't arrive at home until eleven o'clock last night.
他二十五岁才上大学。
He didn't go to college until he was 25.
她四十岁才结婚。
She didn't get married until she was forty.
我女儿昨天十二点才睡觉，作业太多了。
My daughter didn't go to bed until 12 o'clock yesterday. Too much homework.
What to remember
- Place the relevant time before 才.
- Read lateness relative to an expectation.
- Do not confuse timing with small-quantity 才.
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Source and editorial notes
Explanation rewritten for Laowai. Examples are adapted from the Laowai English grammar curriculum, with editorial corrections where needed. The original curriculum credits AllSet Learning’s Chinese Grammar Wiki as used with permission. Read the retained source credits.
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