才
Pattern
Time / condition + 才 + verb phrase
Key words
Core idea
才 before a verb can show that something happens only after a later time, condition, or effort. It often feels later, slower, or more limited than expected.
The time or condition usually comes first. 才 then introduces the action that finally happens.
Compare with sooner-than-expected
就 often suggests something happens earlier or more readily than expected. 才 often suggests the opposite.
Examples
他十点才到。
Tā shí diǎn cái dào.
He did not arrive until ten o'clock.
我做完功课才看电视。
Wǒ zuò wán gōngkè cái kàn diànshì.
I watch TV only after finishing homework.
下课以后我们才吃饭。
Xiàkè yǐhòu wǒmen cái chīfàn.
We eat only after class ends.
Common mistakes
Avoid
他才十点到。
Use
他十点才到。
For the meaning did not arrive until ten, put 才 before the verb, not before the time.
Seen in stories
The Song We Almost Remembered
他们先去音乐教室问，老师听了很久才摇头。
They first ask in the music classroom, and the teacher shakes her head only after listening for a long time.
The Song We Almost Remembered
他们又去操场问，跑步的同学听完才笑。
They ask on the sports field, and the running students laugh only after hearing it.
The Song We Almost Remembered
节目播出去以后，电话才响起来。
Only after the program airs does the phone ring.
The Song We Almost Remembered
他笑着说：“你们唱错第四秒，我才知道是我的。”
He laughs and says, “Only when you sang the fourth second wrong did I know it was mine.”
The Accidentally Wrapped Gift
小宁这才发现，自己把维修师傅的工具盒包成礼物了。
Only then does Xiao Ning realize she has wrapped the repairman's toolbox as a gift.
Show 7 more story examples
The Café We Only Just Found
他们从捷运站往南走，走了二十分钟才发现地图反了。
They walk south from the MRT station and only after twenty minutes realize the map is upside down.
The Café We Only Just Found
他们问过水果摊老板，才知道咖啡店搬到隔壁巷。
They ask the fruit-stand owner and only then learn the café moved to the next alley.
The Café We Only Just Found
店员说他们今天才刚关门，咖啡已经卖完。
The staff says they have only just closed today, and the coffee is sold out.
The Café We Only Just Found
老板看见以后，才笑着拿出三张明天的保留卡。
After the owner sees this, only then does she smile and take out three reservation cards for tomorrow.
The Café We Only Just Found
他们第二天才喝到咖啡，却觉得这家店一点也不难找了。
They only drink the coffee the next day, but now feel the shop is not hard to find at all.
The Midnight Sign-Off
他说，只有在最想退学的时候，才敢给电台写信。
He says only when he most wanted to quit school did he dare write to the station.
The Midnight Sign-Off
那封信后来被读出来，他才觉得学校里还有人懂他。
That letter was later read aloud, and only then did he feel someone at school still understood him.