已经

Pattern visualization

Examples

1. 已经吃了。▶ —
   Already ate.
2. 已经晚了。▶ —
   It's already late.

Collocations

Mnemonic

已经 yǐjīng "already" — 已 (cease, already) + 经 (pass, traditional 經). Often paired with sentence-final 了: 已经…了. Japanese すでに / 既に is the closest functional match.

Quick check

1. 已经…了 pattern?

   • already done (emphatic completion)
   • about to
   • can/able
   • have been