前

in front

Stroke count: 9

Readings

On readingゼン

Kun readingまえ、-まえ

JLPT level: N5 Jōyō Grade 2

Meanings

in frontRtK
彼は部下たちの前を歩いた。He walked in front of his men.tatoeba
before

last (i.e. immediately preceding)
previous
ex-
former
pre- (e.g. premodern)

Synonyms

Popular Usage

Radicals and components

Radical刀knife 刂variant

Components

How it's built

前

Mnemonic (RtK)

ⓘ

horns · butcher · moon (月) · month (月) · flesh (月) · part of the body (月) · sword (刀) · sabre (刀) · saber (刀)

From "Remembering the Kanji" by James Heisig · Frame 309

Compound words

午前ごぜん

morning; a.m.

名前なまえ

name; given name; first name

以前いぜん

before; prior to; ago; the past; before

前者ぜんしゃ

the former; the first

前進ぜんしん

advance; moving forward; progress

前後ぜんご

front and rear; front and back; before and behind; back and forth; before and after

前任ぜんにん

former (incumbent); predecessor

前夜祭ぜんやさい

event held the night before another event; eve (of a festival) (e.g. Christmas Eve)

～年前ねんまえ

~ years before

腕前うでまえ

ability; skill; facility

当たり前あたりまえ

natural; reasonable; obvious; usual; common

お前おまえ

you; before (a god, nobleman, etc.); in front of

駅前えきまえ

in front of a station

気前きまえ

generosity

空前くうぜん

unprecedented; record-breaking

左前ひだりまえ

wearing a kimono with the right side over the left (normally used only for the dead); downturn; recession; economic adversity; being in a bad financial situation

事前じぜん

prior; beforehand; in advance; before the fact; ex ante

自前じまえ

paying one's own expenses; going into business for oneself; working independently; person who earns their own living

手前てまえ

before oneself; in front of one; nearby; a bit before reaching (a location); this side (of a location)

出前でまえ

home delivery (of food); outside catering

人前にんまえ

portion of food

寸前すんぜん

just before; on the verge of; on the brink of; just in front of; just ahead of

生前せいぜん

while alive; during one's lifetime

戦前せんぜん

pre-war days; before the war

On Reading Examples

彼は首を前後に振りました。ぜんご

He shook his head back and forth.tatoeba

彼は私の前方を歩いた。ぜんぽう

He walked ahead of me.tatoeba

爆弾が落ちたとき、私は家が前後に揺れ動くのを感じた。ぜんご

When the bomb was dropped, I felt the house rock back and forth.tatoeba

Kun Reading Examples

彼は米国に発つ前に東京にいる上司に会いたいと思った。まえ

He wanted to see his boss in Tokyo before leaving for America.tatoeba

彼は父親の前では何もものが言えない。まえ

He can't say anything to his father's face.tatoeba

彼は父親の前では落ち着かなかった。まえ

He felt uneasy in his father's presence.tatoeba

Additional Examples

彼は米国に発つ前に東京にいる上司に会いたいと思った。

He wanted to see his boss in Tokyo before leaving for America.tatoeba

彼は父親の前では何もものが言えない。

He can't say anything to his father's face.tatoeba

彼は父親の前では落ち着かなかった。

He felt uneasy in his father's presence.tatoeba

前者が特に知られている。

In particular, the former is well known.wiki

本項では前者について解説する。

The following explanation concerns the former.wiki

前進座の創立に参加。

Participated in the opening of the Zenshin-za Theatre.wiki

- 前進座創立者の一人

- One of the founders of a theatrical group called the Zenshinza (literally, the Advance)wiki

前