already

Showing That Things Have Changed

Level 2

Already can mark a new state: Now the soup cold already. It is not simply a past-tense ending; the clause can signal that a state now holds or a transition has taken place.

How It Works

Already can show that a new state now holds. The soup cold already says the soup has become cold, not simply that a cold state existed at some remote past time. A state can change without an explicit action verb.

Pay attention to the predicate and reference time. Don't have already can mean that a previously available thing is no longer available. Must go already can present the moment for departure as having arrived. These meanings cannot all be captured by translating already as earlier than expected or treating it as a fixed past-tense ending.

Examples (4)

  1. Now the soup cold already.

    The soup has become cold now.

  2. The shop closed already.

    The shop is now closed.

  3. Don't have already; the last one sold.

    There are none left now; the last one has been sold.

  4. I must go already.

    It is time for me to leave now.

How It Connects

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

alreadyLevel 2Showing That Things Have Changed

Learn This First

Contrast a completed event with a state that has come to hold.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.