刚才 (gāngcái)

刚才 means "just now" or "a moment ago" and always refers to a completed action in the past. Compare with 刚 (gāng), which means "just" and focuses on actions that are very recent but can still be ongoing or present: 他刚来 (He just arrived, he's here now) vs. 他刚才来了 (He came a moment ago, he may have left). 刚才 is only past tense; 刚 can be used for the immediate present.

Meanings

[time word] Just now; a moment ago. Refers to something that happened a short time before the current moment.

Example Sentences

你刚才说什么？我没听清楚。 Nǐ gāngcái shuō shénme? Wǒ méi tīng qīngchǔ. What did you just say? I didn't hear clearly.

刚才有人打电话找你。 Gāngcái yǒu rén dǎ diànhuà zhǎo nǐ. Someone called for you just now.

他刚才还在这里，现在不见了。 Tā gāngcái hái zài zhèlǐ, xiànzài bù jiàn le. He was just here a moment ago; now he's gone.

我刚才忘了关灯。 Wǒ gāngcái wàng le guāndēng. I forgot to turn off the lights just now.

Collocations

Collocation	Meaning
刚才说的 (gāngcái shuō de)	what was just said
刚才发生的 (gāngcái fāshēng de)	what just happened
就在刚才 (jiù zài gāngcái)	just this moment ago
刚才还... (gāngcái hái...)	was still...just now
刚 vs 刚才	刚 = very recently (can be present); 刚才 = a moment ago (past only)

Memory Hook

刚 means "just/just now" and 才 adds the sense of "only then." Together they sharpen the focus: the action happened, and it happened only a short moment ago — just now, no earlier.