How do you say "I just glanced at it" in Simplified Chinese?

"I just glanced at it" in Simplified Chinese is "我刚才看了一眼". This phrase is commonly used in China.

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How to Say ‘I just glanced at it’ in Simplified Chinese

Q: What does "我刚才看了一眼" mean in English?

"我刚才看了一眼" means "I just glanced at it" in English. Usage tip: [刚才] means "just now / a moment ago," usually for the recent past. Put it before the verb phrase: [我刚才看了一眼], [我刚才问了师傅].

我刚才看了一眼

wǒ gāng cái kàn le yī yǎn

[waw gahng-tsye kahn luh ee yen]

💬 Usage Tip: [刚才] means "just now / a moment ago," usually for the recent past. Put it before the verb phrase: [我刚才看了一眼], [我刚才问了师傅].

Phrase Breakdown

我刚才

wǒ gāng cái

I just now; a moment ago I

刚才 refers to a short time ago.

Example

我刚才见到他了。

I just saw him a moment ago.

Words in this phrase

我

wǒ

[waw]

I; me

A first-person pronoun used to refer to yourself.

Example

我刚才看了一眼计价器。

I just took a look at the meter.

刚才

gāng cái

[gahng-tsye]

just now; a moment ago

Refers to something that happened very recently.

Example

我刚才看了一眼计价器。

I just took a look at the meter.

看了一眼

kàn le yī yǎn

took a quick look; glanced

看一眼 means to look briefly; 了 indicates the action happened.

Example

我看了一眼手机。

I took a quick look at my phone.

Words in this phrase

看

kàn

[kahn]

to look; to check

A common verb meaning to look at or examine something.

Example

我刚才看了一眼账单。

I just glanced at the bill.

了

[luh]

completed-action particle

A particle placed after a verb to show the action happened or was completed.

Example

我刚才看了一眼，所以发现了问题。

I just took a look, so I noticed the problem.

一

yī

[ee]

one; a

The number one; here it helps make the action sound brief.

Example

我刚才看了一眼计价器。

I just glanced at the meter.

眼

yǎn

[yen]

eye; glance

Literally means eye; in this structure it means a quick glance.

Example

我刚才看了一眼司机。

I just glanced at the driver.

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