Breakdown of míngtiān wǒmen tíqián shí fēnzhōng chūfā, jiù bú huì chídào le.
不bù
not
我们wǒmen
we
明天míngtiān
tomorrow
会huì
will
Questions & Answers about míngtiān wǒmen tíqián shí fēnzhōng chūfā, jiù bú huì chídào le.
What does 就 (jiù) do in this sentence? Is it like “then”?
Yes. 就 links a condition to a result, much like “then/so.” The pattern is: [Condition], 就 [Result].
- 明天我们提前十分钟出发，就不会迟到了。 = If we leave 10 minutes early tomorrow, then we won’t be late.
- You can optionally add 如果/要是 before the first clause: 如果明天我们提前十分钟出发，就不会迟到了。
- 就 also adds a feeling of straightforwardness/immediacy: do A, then B naturally follows.
Why is 不 (bù) pronounced bú in 不会 (bú huì)?
Tone sandhi: 不 (bù) changes to the second tone (bú) when it comes before a fourth-tone syllable.
- 不会 bú huì, 不对 bú duì, 不要 bú yào
- Otherwise it stays bù: 不高 bù gāo, 不忙 bù máng, 不好 bù hǎo
- As a stand-alone exclamation, it’s bù: 不！
What does 会 (huì) mean here? “Can” or “will”?
Here 会 means “will”/“be likely to,” expressing prediction or likelihood, not ability.
- Ability: 我会游泳 (I can/know how to swim).
- Prediction: 明天会下雨 (It will likely rain tomorrow), 我会迟到 (I will be late).
- In the sentence, 不会迟到 = will not be late.
What’s the purpose of the sentence-final 了 (le) in ?