If you have been learning Portuguese and talking to Brazilians, you certainly have heard the word Já.

• Já vou.
• Volto já.
• Já vi esse filme.
• Você já foi ao Brasil?

These are all very common phrases, right?

The word Já truly is present in everyday Portuguese.  It is a powerful little word. It is an adverb of time that is used in different situations with different meanings.

Learn how to use Já though 18 practical examples. I will also show you how to ask and answer questions with já.

You will see how much better you will be able to express yourself in Portuguese.

Já = now, immediately

Here Já indicates ugency.

Situation 1

Milena is at Maria’s birthday party. She sees that it is already 11PM. She needs to wake up very early tomorrow, so she gets up and says:

• Pessoal, a festa tá ótima, mas já vou.
  = Folks, the party is great, but I am leaving now.

Situation 2

Milena and Pablo are flying to São Paulo today on vacation. They need to be at the airport by 5pm, but are running late. Milena says:

• Temos que ir já!
  = We need to go immediately.

Situation 3

Maria walks into her son Toninho’s room and is startled by the mess she finds. Toninho is watching TV in the living room. Maria calls him:

1. Toninho, venha já aqui!
   = Toninho, come here right now!

Wondering about “Venha”? It is the command form of the verb “Vir”. Learn it with this video lesson.

 

Já = in a minute, very soon

The difference between this use of Já and the previous examples is that here it does not indicate urgency.

Situation 1

Ana and Paulo are having dinner together and enjoying a good bottle of wine. Ana needs to use the restroom. She says:

• Volto já. (or: Já volto.)
  = I will be back in a minute.

Situation 2

Luciana calls Carol. Carol cannot speak at the moment. She says:

• Não posso falar agora. Já te ligo de volta.
  = I cannot talk now. I will call you back in a minute.

 

Já já = in a minute, very soon

You will also here a double já. It also means “in a minute”, “very soon”.

Situation 1

João and Maria work together. João is getting a ride home with Maria. Maria says:

• Está pronto para ir? Vou sair já já.
  = Are you ready to go? I will leave in a minute.

Situation 2

Carol can’t talk at the moment. She tells Luciana:

• Não posso falar agora. Já já te ligo de volta.
  = I cannot talk now. I will call you back in a minute.

Situation 3

Maria is really upset with the son Toninho. She says:

• Toninho, você precisa organizar seu quarto já já!
  = Toninho, you need to organize your room very soon!

 

Já = already

Situation 1

It’s only 11am and Maria is already thinking about lunch. She comments:

• Ainda são 11 horas e já estou com fome.
  = It’s still 11 and I am already hungry.

Situation 2

Maria asks if her coworker Laura wants to grab lunch with her. Laura says:

• Já almocei.
  = I’ve already had lunch.

Note that we use the simple past even when in English we use the present perfect.

Situation 3

Maria invites Laura to go to the movies. Laura says:

• Eu já vi esse filme.
  = I have already seen this movie.

 

Questions with Já

Situation 1

Laura is talking about her baby. Maria asks:

• O seu filho já fala?
  = Does you baby already speak?

Situation 2

João is talking about his girlfriend. Maria asks:

• Você já conheceu a família da sua namorada?
  = Have you already met your girlfriend’s family?

Situation 3

Maria is wondering if her coworker Laura would like to join her for lunch. She asks:

• Você já almoçou?
  = Have you already had lunch? / Did you have lunch yet?

 

How to ask ‘Have you ever?’ In Portuguese

It is easy. Here is the formula:

• Você já + verb in the simple past tense + question object

See the examples below.

Situation 1

Steve’s girlfriend is Brazilian. His coworker asks:

• Você já foi ao Brasil?
  = Have you ever been to Brazil?

Situation 2

Steve is in Brazil for the first time. Someone asks him:

• Você já provou feijoada?
  = Have you ever tried feijoada?

How to Answer Já Questions

Affirmative answers

To answer a question affirmatively, you can simply say Já. You can also use the action verb after já.

Situation 1

Question: Você já conheceu a família da sua namorada?

= Have you already met your girlfriend’s family?

Possible affirmative answers:

• Já.
• Já sim.
• Sim, já conheci.

Situation 2

Question: Você já foi ao Brasil? = Have you ever been to Brazil?

Possible affirmative answers:

• Já.
• Já sim.
• Sim, já fui.

Negative Answers

To answer “not yet”, visit this other lesson. It will add powerful and easy-to-learn expressions to your Portuguese.

 

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