HSK 5 · Time

从前 cóngqián “previously” in Chinese

Traditional 從前

What 从前 means

  1. previously
  2. formerly
  3. once upon a time

How to say 从前

  • Pitch chart of the second tone: rises from mid to high, 3 to 5 on the five-level scale从cóng2nd tone, rising
  • Pitch chart of the second tone: rises from mid to high, 3 to 5 on the five-level scale前qián2nd tone, rising

从前 in a sentence

  1. 从前有个美丽的公主。

    Cóngqián yǒu ge měilì de gōngzhǔ.

    Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess.

    Sentence #343967 from Tatoeba

  2. 我从前和你一样穷。

    Wǒ cóngqián hé nǐ yíyàng qióng.

    I used to be as poor as you.

    Sentence #10269063 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters · translation adapted

  3. 我们再也不能一起回到从前了。

    Wǒmen zài yě bù néng yìqǐ huídào cóngqián le.

    We can never go back to the way things were.

    Sentence #2559016 from Tatoeba · translation adapted

How 从前 is built

Each colour is one part of the character. Parts repeat across thousands of characters, so learning them makes new words easier. See all 214 in our radicals chart.

The character 从 (cóng) with each of its parts in a different colour
从cóngfrom; through; via
  • 人person · rén
  • 人person · rén

Memory aidOne person 人 following another 人: to follow, from.

The character 前 (qián) with each of its parts in a different colour
前qiánfront
  • 丷eight form of 八 · bā
  • 一one · yī
  • 刖cutting off the feet as a form of punishment · yuè

How to write 从前

从 4 strokes · 前 9 strokes

Watch the order, then press Try writing it and draw each stroke in the grid. Each stroke is checked as you go.

从前 (cóngqián) stroke order chart: each stroke of the characters in the order you write them
Stroke order chart for 从前 (cóngqián). Red marks the next stroke, so you can copy it onto paper one step at a time.

Words related to 从前

Words with 从

从cóng · from从小cóngxiǎo · from childhood从来cónglái · always从此cóngcǐ · from now on从事cóngshì · to engage in从而cóng'ér · thus自从zìcóng · since (a time)服从fúcóng · to obey从容cóngróng · calm

Words with 前

前qián · front前面qiánmiàn · front以前yǐqián · before面前miànqián · in front of前天qiántiān · the day before yesterday前年qiánnián · the year before last提前tíqián · to bring forward之前zhīqián · before目前mùqián · at the present time前途qiántú · prospects

More words: Time & Sequence

曾经céngjīng · once迟早chízǎo · sooner or later除夕Chúxī · lunar New Year’s Eve从此cóngcǐ · from now on公元gōngyuán · CE (Common Era)古代gǔdài · ancient times国庆节Guóqìngjié · PRC National Day (October 1st)阶段jiēduàn · stage

FAQs

从前 (cóngqián) means “previously” or “formerly”. It is an HSK 5 word.
Say it cóngqián: cóng with a 2nd tone, then qián with a 2nd tone. Press Listen at the top of this page to hear it, or Slowly to hear each tone clearly.
In Traditional characters, used in Taiwan and Hong Kong, 从前 is written 從前. The pronunciation is the same.
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type congqian with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 从前 from the suggestions. Typing congqian into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
从前 is an HSK 5 word in the HSK 2.0 word lists.

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Sources: meaning and pinyin checked by a native Mandarin teacher against the official HSK lists. Extra meanings from CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0). Example sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR). Character parts and stroke order from Make Me a Hanzi.