zhongwen-obsidian/就jiù.md

就jiù is an adverb which acts as a temporal marker for a verb/adjective - stressing the imminence or urgency of the action/state. It can also indicate an event takes place sooner/earlier than expected. Consider the following:

1. 我今年想去中国。
2. 我今年就想去中国。 (1) is a simple statement that you wish to go to China. Sentence (2) uses 就 to underscore the urgency of the plan - "I want to go to China, as early as this year".

More examples:

1. 我八点就可以回家。 I can return home as early as 8.
2. 我现在就去。 I'll go right away.
3. 在美国十八岁就可以开车。可是在中国呢，十八岁还不可以开车。对吗？ In America, you can drive as early as 18. But in China, at 18 you still can't drive. Right?