The 要。。。了 construction

Question 1

What is the function of the 要。。。了 construction?

Answer 1

To indicate that a situation is about to change or that a new situation is about to occur.

Question 2

Where is the 要。。。了 construction located in the sentence?

Answer 2

要 immediately precedes the verb that indicates a change in situation, 了 is placed at the end of the sentence.

Question 3

How can 就 or 快 be added to the construction? What is the modified meaning?

Answer 3

就or 快 can be placed immediately before 要 to indicate the imminence of the change in situation. An adverbial adjunct denoting time may be placed before 就要 but never before 快要. Sentences that use 快 in this construction often omit 要.

Question 4

I’m going back home tomorrow (implying it’s extremely soon).

Answer 4

明天我就要去回家。