Time Expression: 刚才 (gāngcái) - Just Now/Earlier

刚才 is technically a time noun. This is a big deal in Chinese grammar. Because it is a noun, it has a lot of freedom. You can place it before the subject or after the subject. It acts as a temporal anchor for your sentence. Unlike some other past-tense markers, it doesn't always need the particle 了 (le). However, 了 often hangs out with it because things are usually finished. It refers to the time period from a few seconds ago to about half an hour ago. If you are talking about something that happened this morning while you are eating dinner, 刚才 is probably too recent. It is the "fresh" past. Think of it like a grammar traffic light that just turned green; the change is very recent.

1. 1Using 刚才 is like building with LEGO blocks. There are two main ways to slot it into your sentence:
2. 2Time Noun + Subject + Verb + Object
3. 3Example: 刚才我喝了咖啡。 (Just now I drank coffee.)
4. 4Subject + Time Noun + Verb + Object
5. 5Example: 我刚才喝了咖啡。 (I just now drank coffee.)
6. 6Notice how the meaning doesn't change? You can choose the position based on what you want to emphasize. If you put 刚才 first, you are highlighting the "when." If you put the subject first, you are highlighting the "who." For negative sentences, simply add 没 (méi) or 不 (bù) after 刚才.
7. 7Example: 我刚才没说话。 (I didn't speak just now.)

Use 刚才 when the event is still warm in your memory.

• Real-world scenario: Ordering food. You ordered a spicy dish, but then you changed your mind. You tell the waiter: 刚才我点错了。 (I ordered the wrong thing just now.)
• Real-world scenario: Asking directions. You saw a sign a block back. You say: 刚才我看到了一个路标。 (I saw a sign just now.)
• Real-world scenario: Job interviews. If you want to clarify something you said two minutes ago: 刚才我说的是... (What I said just now was...)
• Relatable moment: When you walk into a room and forget why you are there. 我刚才想做什么？ (What did I want to do just now?)

Don't use 刚才 for things that happened a long time ago. If it happened yesterday, use 昨天 (zuótiān). If it happened an hour ago and you've done five other things since then, 刚才 might feel a bit too close. Also, avoid using it with duration. You cannot say "I studied for two hours just now" using 刚才 in a way that includes the duration inside the time noun's scope. 刚才 is a point, not a stretch of time. Finally, don't use it if you are focusing on the *completion* of an action regardless of when it happened. That is a job for 了 alone or the adverb 刚 (gāng).

Yes, even native speakers mess this up sometimes (okay, rarely, but you will!).

• The "Double Time" Error: Don't use 刚才 with other specific time words like "8:00 AM." It is redundant.
• Wrong Placement: Never put 刚才 at the very end of the sentence. Chinese time words hate being at the end. They want to be near the front.
• The 了 Confusion: While 了 often appears with 刚才, it isn't mandatory if the state is still true or if you are using a negative.
• Mixing with 刚: This is the big one. 刚才 is a noun; 刚 is an adverb. You can say 刚才我... but you cannot say 刚我.... Adverbs must come after the subject.

Let's look at 刚才 (gāngcái) vs. 刚 (gāng).

• Part of Speech: 刚才 is a noun. 刚 is an adverb.
• Position: 刚才 can go before the subject. 刚 *must* go after the subject.
• Time Frame: 刚才 is always the immediate past (minutes ago). 刚 is subjective. You can say "I just moved to China" (我刚来中国) even if it was two months ago, as long as it *feels* recent to you. 刚才 cannot do that.
• Negation: You can put 没 after 刚才. You cannot put 没 after 刚.