Dictionary🇨🇳 Chinese → 🇺🇸 English
以前
yǐqián
Description
“以前”的意思是过去的时间，就是现在之前的日子。
"以前" means a time in the past, that is, the days before now.
我们常常用它来说很久前发生的事情。
We often use "以前" to talk about things that happened a long time ago.
Meanings
以前yǐqián
before now; in the past; formerly
我以前住在北京。
I used to live in Beijing.
以前yǐqián
before a specific point in time
请在九点以前来。
Please come before nine o'clock.
Related words
Notes
- Etymology
以 (from/by) + 前 (front/before), literally "from before."
- Nuance
以前 can stand alone; when marking a time point, it follows the noun, e.g. 三年以前.
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