yet

The word “yet” means up until now; so far — often used in questions and negative statements. In plain terms, "Up to now" in questions/negatives, "still" in positive statements, or "but" as a connector.

“Yet” is pronounced yeht (/jɛt/ in IPA).

Here is “yet” used in a sentence: “Have you finished the report yet?”

Words with a similar meaning to “yet” include even now, still, erenow, so far, to date and formerly.

Depending on how it is used, “yet” can be an adverb and a conjunction.

The word “yet” comes from Old English. From Old English giet, going back to Germanic roots meaning roughly "already" combined with a word meaning "toward" — the same distant root family as "aye".

“Yet” is a very common word in modern English, usually learned at around the A1 level.

“Yet” has 3 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: up until now; so far — often used in questions and negative statements.

'Yet' refers to something expected that has not happened up to now, and usually appears in questions and negatives: 'Has it arrived yet?' 'Still' stresses that a situation continues longer than expected: 'It is still raining.' In short, 'yet' looks for a change, while 'still' marks one that hasn't come.

Both concern actions around the present moment, but 'already' says something has happened, often sooner than expected: 'She has already left.' 'Yet' asks whether it has happened or notes that it hasn't: 'She hasn't left yet.' 'Already' suits positive statements, and 'yet' suits questions and negatives.

In its 'up to now' sense, 'yet' normally goes at the end of a clause: 'I haven't finished yet,' or 'Are we there yet?' It follows the verb and any object. This differs from the conjunction 'yet' meaning 'but,' which starts a contrasting clause.