YET


Meaning of YET in English

I. yet 1 S1 W1 /jet/ BrE AmE adverb

[ Language: Old English ; Origin: giet ]

1 .

a) used in negative statements and questions to talk about whether something that was expected has happened:

I haven’t asked him yet (=but I will) .

Has Edmund arrived yet?

‘Have you finished your homework?’ ‘Not yet.’

b) used in negative statements and questions to talk about whether a situation has started to exist:

‘How are you going to get there?’ ‘I don’t know yet.’

Women didn’t yet have the vote (=at that time) .

‘Is supper ready?’ ‘No, not yet.’

GRAMMAR

In spoken English, yet usually comes at the end of the sentence:

I haven’t finished my homework yet.

It can also come after 'don’t/do not', 'hasn’t/has not', 'isn’t/is not' etc, or before 'why', 'whether' etc:

We do not yet have a solution to this problem.

I haven’t decided yet whether to take part in the competition.

When a past event is being referred to, yet is usually used with perfect tenses, but it can be used with the simple past tense in informal American English:

Did Joe come back yet?

yet, still, already

Yet is used to say that something has not happened or a situation has not started to exist, or to ask if something has happened:

It isn’t time to go yet.

Have you seen him yet?

Still is used to say that an earlier situation has not changed:

This system of naming is still used today (NOT yet used today).

I still don’t understand.

Already is used to emphasize that something has happened or a situation has started to exist:

He has already published two novels.

They already knew one another.

It is also used in questions to show surprise that something has happened sooner than expected:

Have you been there already?

2 . used in negative sentences to say that someone should not or need not do something now, although they may have to do it later:

You can’t give up yet!

Don’t go yet. I like talking to you.

3 . used to emphasize that something is even more than it was before or is in addition to what existed before SYN still

yet more/bigger/higher etc

He got a call from the factory, telling of yet more problems.

Inflation had risen to a yet higher level.

yet another reason to be cautious

The meeting has been cancelled yet again (=one more time after many others) .

4 . the biggest/worst etc (something) yet used to say that something is the biggest, worst etc of its kind that has existed up to now:

This could turn out to be our biggest mistake yet.

Nordstrom’s latest novel looks like his best yet.

5 . as (of) yet used when saying that something has not happened up to now:

We’ve had no luck as yet.

on an as yet undecided date

6 . months/weeks/ages yet used to emphasize how much time will pass before something happens, or how long a situation will continue:

‘When’s your holiday?’ ‘Oh, not for ages yet.’

It could be months yet before they know their fate.

7 . could/may/might yet do something used to say that something is still possible in the future, in spite of the way that things seem now:

We may win yet.

The plan could yet succeed.

8 . somebody/something has yet to do something formal used to say that someone has not done something, or that something has not happened when you think it should already have been done or have happened:

I have yet to hear Ray’s version of what happened.

The bank has yet to respond to our letter.

II. yet 2 W2 BrE AmE conjunction

used to introduce a fact, situation, or quality that is surprising after what you have just said:

Kelly was a convicted criminal, yet many people admired him.

She does not speak our language and yet she seems to understand what we say.

a story that is strange yet true

an inexpensive yet effective solution to our problem

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English.      Longman - Словарь современного английского языка.