English — already / yet / just / still
These four adverbs sharpen the timing of the present perfect. just marks something very recent, already something completed sooner than expected, yet an action expected but not done (in questions and negatives), and still an action that continues. Compare I've just eaten, I've already finished, Have you finished yet? and I still haven't finished.
How it works
just, already and still sit in mid position, between have/has and the past participle: I've just arrived, She's already left, He still hasn't called. yet goes at the end and appears mainly in questions and negatives: Have they arrived yet?, I haven't finished yet.
Examples
| Example | Meaning / use |
|---|---|
| I've just seen her. | just — mid position; a very recent action, moments ago. |
| She's already done it. | already — mid position; completed sooner than expected. |
| Have you called him yet? | yet — end position, question; asking if an expected action is done. |
| I haven't decided yet. | yet — end position, negative; expected but not done up to now. |
| He still hasn't replied. | still — before hasn't; a situation continuing longer than expected, often with impatience. |
| The train has just left. | just — recent event with a present result: it is now gone. |
Good to know
Don't use yet in the middle of a sentence or in an ordinary affirmative statement: not I've yet finished but I haven't finished yet. still keeps its normal mid position even in the negative and goes before the auxiliary — He still hasn't paid — while yet stays at the end: He hasn't paid yet. In American English just and already are often used with the past simple (I just ate, I already ate), but British usage prefers the present perfect.