# Chinese Grammar: 只要……，就…… (As Long As) | HSKReady Canonical: https://hskready.app/en/grammar/hsk-3-conditional-clauses-g092 Language: en Content ID: web-grammar-hsk-3-g092 HSK levels: 3 Updated: 2026-10-23T04:56:01.720Z Scope: published website educational content; full vocabulary, question bank and mock exams remain in the app. Learn how 只要……，就…… links a sufficient condition to its result, with natural examples and a practical contrast. Grammar [HSK 3 · Sentence types › Complex sentences › Conditional clauses](https://hskready.app/en/grammar/hsk-3#hsk-3-g092) # Using 只要……，就…… for Conditions 只要……就…… presents a condition as enough for a result in context. Learn subject placement, the difference from 只有……才……, and why a past condition can still be relevant. 只要 Condition ，（主语）就 Result predicate Example sentence 只要每天复习十分钟，生词就不容易忘。 Zhǐyào měitiān fùxí shí fēnzhōng, shēngcí jiù bù róngyì wàng. As long as you review for ten minutes each day, you will be less likely to forget new words. A repeated study condition leads to a general expected result. **Read the full explanation and examples** ## Meaning: one condition is enough The outline places 只要……，就…… under level 3 compound sentences, in the category of conditional sentences. This lesson focuses on that listed pattern and level; the outline does not establish which exam version is currently administered at any test centre. 只要 introduces a condition, and 就 introduces the result. Together, they mean “as long as” or “provided that”: if the condition is met, it is enough for the result to happen or be possible. The speaker presents the condition as sufficient, not necessarily as the only way to get the result. The pattern can describe a repeated or general outcome, a plan, or a practical offer. Think: “If this condition is satisfied, the stated result follows.” Do not read the pattern as saying that the condition has already happened. ## Form the two parts 只要 introduces the sufficient condition. Put an expressed result subject before 就: 我就可以帮你订票 or 我们就去公园走走. The subjects may differ. The condition subject can also appear before 只要, as in 你只要提前告诉我，我就可以帮你订票. A comma commonly separates the parts in writing. 只要 Condition ，（主语）就 Result predicate - Condition: the case the speaker presents as sufficient for the result. - Result: what will, can, or usually does happen when the condition is met. - 就 often appears before the result’s verb or verb phrase. Choose a result that fits the meaning, such as a plan, ability, or general outcome. ## See the condition and result in context Read each example in two steps: identify what follows 只要, then identify the result introduced by 就. The examples are original teaching material, not official quotations or exam questions. 只要每天复习十分钟，生词就不容易忘。 Zhǐyào měitiān fùxí shí fēnzhōng, shēngcí jiù bù róngyì wàng. As long as you review for ten minutes each day, you will be less likely to forget new words. A repeated study condition leads to a general expected result. 只要你提前告诉我，我就可以帮你订票。 Zhǐyào nǐ tíqián gàosu wǒ, wǒ jiù kěyǐ bāng nǐ dìng piào. As long as you tell me in advance, I can help you book a ticket. An advance notice is a sufficient condition for the offer of help. 只要外面不下雨，我们就去公园走走。 Zhǐyào wàimiàn bù xiàyǔ, wǒmen jiù qù gōngyuán zǒuzou. As long as it is not raining outside, we will go for a walk in the park. Dry weather is presented as enough for the plan to go ahead; the sentence does not rule out going in the rain under a different plan. 只要手机有电，我就能联系到你。 Zhǐyào shǒujī yǒu diàn, wǒ jiù néng liánxì dào nǐ. As long as the phone has power, I can get in touch with you. Having power makes contact possible. ## When it is useful Use the pattern when you want to reassure someone, state a requirement for a plan, or explain a dependable general result. For example, offering help after someone gives notice makes the condition and result clear. A weather condition can also set out when a shared plan will go ahead. The sentence is usually a statement, but its practical force depends on context. A sentence about helping can function as an offer; one about a future activity can express an intention or arrangement. The pattern itself does not turn a statement into a question. To ask whether a condition is sufficient, place the pattern in a natural question context and add an appropriate question form; do not treat 只要……，就…… alone as a question marker. ## Past conditions and sufficient conditions A condition can concern the past and still matter now. 只要你昨天买了票，今天就能进去 presents a past purchase as enough for entry today. The pattern does not assert that the purchase happened, nor does 昨天 by itself make the sentence counterfactual. An imagined “if you had done it, but you did not” reading needs context and suitable wording. 只要你昨天买了票，今天就能进去。 Zhǐyào nǐ zuótiān mǎi le piào, jīntiān jiù néng jìnqu. As long as you bought a ticket yesterday, you can go in today. The past purchase is presented as sufficient for today’s entry. 只要 does not assert that the purchase occurred, and the past-time expression does not make the sentence incorrect. Compare 只要有票，就能进去 (“a ticket is enough to enter”) with 只有有票，才能进去 (“a ticket is required to enter”). The first does not say tickets are the only possible route; the second does not say a ticket is the only requirement. Choose “enough” or “required” according to the intended rule. ## Frequently asked questions **Does 只要 mean this is the only way to get the result?** No. It presents the stated condition as sufficient for the result. It does not necessarily say that no other condition could also lead to that result. **Can the subjects in the two parts be different?** Yes. For example, one person can provide the condition while another person is the subject of the result. Keep the condition after 只要 and the result after 就. **Does 只要……，就…… make a question?** No. The pattern connects a condition and a result. Whether the full sentence is a question depends on its surrounding wording and context. **Source**[hsk.cn-bj.ufileos.com · PDF page 394](https://hsk.cn-bj.ufileos.com/3.0/%E6%96%B0%E7%89%88HSK%E8%80%83%E8%AF%95%E5%A4%A7%E7%BA%B21219.pdf#page=394) ## Continue in the app Full mock exams are available in HSKReady. [![Download on the App Store](https://hskready.app/download-on-app-store-black.svg)Download on the App Store](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id6791916440?l=en)[![Get it on Google Play](https://hskready.app/get-it-on-google-play.svg)Get it on Google Play](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.curiolab.hskready&hl=en) [HSKReady App](https://hskready.app/en/app)