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Conditional StatementsHSK 5

Expressing "once...then..." with 一旦...就...

Use 一旦...就... to express "once...then..." for an event that, once it occurs, will inevitably trigger a consequence. The condition introduced by 一旦 is often hypothetical or future-oriented. A common pitfall is over-applying it to past habits; instead, reserve it for conditional future scenarios.

Structure

一旦 + Condition，Subj. + 就 + Consequence
The subject may also precede 一旦: Subj. + 一旦 + Condition，就 + Consequence.

Examples

  • 有些人一旦有了钱，就变了。
    Yǒu xiē rén yí dàn yǒu le qián, jiù biàn le.
    Some people change as soon as they have money.
  • 一旦你的公司上市，你就可以变成有钱人。
    Yí dàn nǐ de gōng sī shàng shì, nǐ jiù kě yǐ biàn chéng yǒu qián rén.
    Once your company goes public, you'll be a rich man.
  • 这张桌子不稳定，一旦发生什么小小的振动，就会倒塌。
    Zhè zhāng zhuō zi bù wěn dìng, yí dàn fā shēng shén me xiǎo xiǎo de zhèn dòng, jiù huì dǎo tā.
    This table isn't very stable. If there's even a small vibration, it will fall over.
  • 一旦做出决定，就没有借口，只有认真去做。
    Yí dàn zuò chū jué dìng, jiù méi yǒu jiè kǒu, zhǐ yǒu rèn zhēn qù zuò.
    Once a decision is made, there are no more excuses, and all you can do is take it seriously and do it.
  • 人一旦在一个很舒服的环境中，就不想继续努力了。
    Rén yí dàn zài yí gè hěn shū fu de huán jìng zhōng, jiù bù xiǎng jì xù nǔ lì le.
    Once you're in a comfortable environment, you don't want to keep trying.

Words that use this