How To Use Still And Yet In English (What’s The Difference!?) | Common English Mistakes

He is still eating. No.  he is yet eating. No.  he is still eating. No he is yet eating. Huh? I don’t know! 

 

What’s up guys?  My name is Shane and today we are talking about still and yet. These are 2 very common words in English but many students learning English have problems with them but don’t worry because by the end of the video, you will understand how to use still and how to use yet.

 

And make sure you watch until the very end of the video because there will be a quiz to test your understanding. Okay, let’s get started. 

 

Still

Let’s start with still.  And today I am going to be asking a lot of questions because this is the best way to learn the meaning of new vocabulary.  

 

So let’s have a look at an example first. I am still hungry.  What does this mean? Am I hungry now? Yes.

 

Was I hungry in the past? About 10, 15 minutes ago? Yes. 

 

So this is the meaning of still. Something started in the past and it continues until now. It still hasn’t finished.

 

Let’s look at some more examples. I am still looking for my keys.  What I am doing now?  I am looking for my keys.

 

Have I finished looking for my keys? No. 

 

Was I looking for my keys in the past? Maybe 5/10 minutes ago? Yes.

 

So in this sentence, still means the action started in the past and it’s still going until now, right now. 

 

Now, let’s have a look at a question. Are you still single? What does this mean? Are you single now?  Yes.

 

Were you single in the past? Maybe Yesterday? 2 days ago? Yes. 

 

So here, still means you were single in the past and you are still single now.  It started in the past and it continues until right now.  It still hasn’t finished.

 

Now, let’s look at a negative.  I still don’t know where my keys are. What does this mean? Do I know where my keys are now? No I don’t. 

 

Did I know where my keys were in the past? Maybe 1 minute ago? 2 minutes ago? No I didn’t.

 

So this still means I don’t know where my keys are now and I didn’t know where they were before. The action started in the past and it continues until right now in the present.

 

And let’s have a look at all these sentences again. I am still hungry.  I am still looking for my keys. Are you still single? I still don’t know where my keys are. 

 

Where is still in all of these sentences?  It’s after the subject. So normally, when we use still, still comes after the subject. So if you’re ever not sure, where do I put still, put it after the subject.

 

Yet

Now, let’s look at yet. And remember, I am going to be asking you lots of questions. So let’s have a look at an example. 

 

He hasn’t left yet.  What does this mean?  Has he left? No.  No he hasn’t. 

 

Is he going to leave soon?  Yeah, probably. 

 

Do I think he is going to leave some time in the future? Yes I do.

 

So this is the meaning of yet.  Something hasn’t changed but we think it will change in the future. Something should have changed, he should have left but he still hasn’t left.  Something should have happened but it hasn’t happened.

 

What about this one? I haven’t found my passport yet.  What am I doing now?  Probably looking for my passport.

 

Was I looking for my passport in the passport? Yes I was.

 

Have I found my passport? No.

 

But do I think I will find it soon in the future? Yes I do.

 

So here again, we use yet because it’s a negative sentence about something that hasn’t happened but it will probably happen soon in the future.  We think it will happen very soon in the future.

 

Now, let’s look at a question. Have you ordered the pizza yet? Has the person ordered the pizza? Not sure, maybe. 

 

If he says no, do we think he will order it soon? Yes. 

 

Should he have ordered it already?  Yes, we think he should have ordered it already. 

 

So we use yet again because I think the situation will change soon and I think he should have done it already.

 

And if we look at all these sentences again.  He hasn’t left yet. I haven’t found my passport yet and have you ordered the pizza yet? 

 

If we look at these sentences, where is yet?  It’s at the end of the sentences. Normally we put yet at the end of sentences. So if you’re not sure where to put yet, you can put it at the end of the sentence.  Normally you will be right. 

 

Sometimes you can actually use still and yet in the same sentence.  Let me give you an example.  I still haven’t found my passport yet. 

 

We can use still because it started in the past and continues until now. 

 

And we can use yet because it’s a negative sentence and we think that I will find my passport very very soon.  

 

Quiz

Okay, no we have learned the basics of still and yet but now, we are going to have a little quiz to test your understanding.  You will see a sentence up here and that sentence will have a missing word.  You can fill in the missing word with still or yet. And remember, always think about why. Why are you using that word?

 

So let’s look at the first example.  He … hasn’t got a job.  He … hasn’t got a job. The correct answer is still.  He still hasn’t got a job.  Why?  Because he started looking for a job in the past.  And it continues until now, in the present he does not have a job.

 

Okay, let’s look at number 2. I haven’t got a job. I haven’t got a job.  The correct answer is I haven’t got a job yet.  Why? Because we are using it in a negative sentence and because we think it will change very soon in the future or it should have happened already.

 

Okay, question number 3. Has the dog eaten? Has the dog eaten?  And the correct answer is has the dog eaten yet?  We use yet because it hasn’t happened but we think it will change very soon in the future.  We think that the dog will eat very soon in the future.

 

Okay, question number 4. Are you … learning English? Are you … learning English? And the correct answer are you still learning English? We use still because the action started in the past and it is still happening now, it hasn’t finished.  It’s happening now in the present.

 

Okay and the last question.  I am not going to give you the answer because I want you to comment the answer in the comment down below and tell me why. So let’s have a look at the last question. Why do you think he is … waiting at the bus stop?  Why do you think he is … waiting at the bus stop?  So make sure you comment your answer below and tell me why.

 

And that is it for today. Thank you so much for watching. If you have any questions about the lesson, you can comment down below. And if you’re interested in learning about more common mistakes in English, you can check out this video somewhere here. And if you haven’t subscribed already, make sure you subscribe right now so you don’t miss any video that can help you understand English like a native speaker.  And if you enjoyed the video, please hit like and please share this with your friends. And for more English, follow my Instagram and I will see you in the next video. And I look forward to seeing your comments down below!  And, and, i. and we think that the …