I often use 'just' in sentences.
For example, "I just subscribed to your podcast".
"I just realised what I did".
Does it sound native, and is it formal enough to use in an email to a client?
So, the answer to both of those is yes.
It is definitely...
sounds negative.
The sentences that you wrote are 100 percent correct.
They are the kinds of things that I would say.
And it's fine to use it informally or formally.
This is one of those things where it doesn't change.
There's no informality or formality associated with the word 'just'.
But the word 'just' has quite a few different meanings, and again, I had to look this up
to answer your question, and this is when I discovered, oh my gosh, it has this meaning,
this meaning, this meaning, loads of them.
1.
Using JUST to express time
The one that you're talking about, I've just done something, is using 'just' to express
time.
Okay.
Recent time.
So, it's a synonym for recently or a very short time (before*) or after speaking.
So, whatever it is that you're talking about.
Okay.
So, "Where's my phone?
I just had it".
Right this minute, a minute ago, moments ago, "I just had my phone".
So, we're talking about time now.
Just, just before now, a second ago, I just had my phone.
"Could you wait for me?
I'm just going to the shops.".
So, I'm, right now, going to the shops.
"I'm just going to the shops."
And so, you're going to hear this with the present perfect and the past perfect tenses
quite a bit as well, because they're expressing the stuff that's happened in the past right
up to now.
So, it's still affecting the present and that's why we use the present perfect, for example,
like, "I've just decided to move to France.".
Moments ago/now, right in the present here, "I've just decided to move to France.".
And the other example I have here is, "just before that had happened..."
So, now we're talking about something in the past and we wanted to talk about something
that happened just before it.
That's why we're using the past perfect.
"Just before this thing had happened..."
So, "just before this thing had happened I was inside the house.".
Okay.
So yeah 'just' can be used to talk about time, when you want to talk about something being
very close to the present time that you're talking about.
So, it's just next to it.
That's a way of thinking about it, right next to it, just next to it.
2.
Using JUST for emphasis
We can use just for emphasis, to emphasise the imperative.
So, instead of telling someone, "Do it!", you could say to someone, "Just do it!".
"Stop arguing.
Just do it!".
Okay.
You'll hear that all the time.
That's the kind of thing my parents would say to me as a kid when I was misbehaving.
"Stop arguing.
Just do it!".
You could say to someone, "Stop talking.
Do your work.", or you could say to someone, "Just stop talking and just do your work.
You can put it in there to emphasise the imperative.
And the last one here is, "Don't think about it.
Stop thinking about it.", or you could say, "Just don't think about it!", "Just stop thinking
about it!".
So, it emphasises verb.
3.
Using JUST to mean 'only'
The next one.
We can use 'just' to mean 'only', to mean 'only'.
So, "my first paycheck was just fifty dollars".
"It was only just 50 dollars".
"It was only fifty dollars".
You can use any combination of those.
"It was only fifty bucks.", "It was just fifty bucks".
"It was only just 50 bucks.".
"When I was 17, I was just 5 foot high".
"I was only 5 foot high".
Okay, so 'just' can mean 'only.
4.
Using JUST to mean 'exactly'
We can use just to mean 'exactly', 'exactly'.
Okay.
So, "You look just like my sister".
So, you look exactly like my sister.
"You look just like my sister".
So, I guess with 'just' it's pretty much always proximity.
You know, in one way or another, proximity to something, but you look almost exactly
perfectly like my sister, "You look just like my sister".
"The cat over there is just like the one that I saw yesterday".
So, it is so similar, "It's just like the one that I saw yesterday.".
"That cat is just like the one that I saw yesterday.".
5.
Using JUST to mean 'simply' or 'absolutely'
And then, the very last meaning for 'just' is for it to mean 'simply' or 'absolutely'.
Okay.
And the examples that I have here are, "Today's just a perfect day".
"Today is just a perfect day".
Today is simply a perfect day.
Today is absolutely a perfect day.
"It is just a perfect day.".
"Our holiday was just perfect.
It was just awesome.
It was just brilliant.".
So, it's... yeah, I guess, it's almost like it's emphasising.
It's like saying 'simply', it's like 'absolutely'.
"It was just brilliant".
"Something just doesn't feel right".
Something simply doesn't feel right.
Something absolutely doesn't feel right.
So, those are the five different ways that we can use the word 'just'.
I hope you're enjoying that one, guys.
G'day, guys.
Pete here.
Just a quick message.
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