għadu kemm

An Event Just Completed

Level 4

Use għadu kemm for masculine singular and għadha kemm for feminine singular, followed by the subject's perfect event form.

How It Works

Għadu kemm with a masculine singular subject and għadha kemm with a feminine singular subject mean “has just” before a finite perfect. The event verb agrees with that subject: għadu kemm fetaħ, “he has just opened”; għadha kemm bagħtet, “she has just sent”. Kemm remains unchanged.

Recentness is relative to the situation, with no fixed duration in minutes. Compare diġà bagħtet, “she has already sent”, with għadha kemm bagħtet: the latter explicitly highlights recent completion. The perfect reports an event, unlike a passive participle describing its resulting state. A continuing activity instead uses qed and an imperfect. After a completed arrival, a following imperfect can express the purpose of coming; that purpose need not itself have been completed.

Examples (4)

  1. Nina għadha kemm bagħtet ir-ritratti.

    Nina has just sent the photographs.

    Sending is completed and recent.

  2. Il-karozza għadha kemm waslet.

    The car has just arrived.

    Karozza is feminine, matching għadha and waslet.

  3. Rita għadha kemm lestiet ix-xogħol.

    Rita has just finished the work.

    The finite feminine perfect marks recent completion.

  4. David għadu kemm fetaħ il-ħanut.

    David has just opened the shop.

    Għadu and fetaħ identify a masculine singular subject.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

għadu kemmLevel 4An Event Just Completed

Learn This First

Teach għadu kemm and għadha kemm with finite perfect events as has just. Keep recent completion separate from continuing activity, a resulting state and an arrival's still-uncompleted purpose.