{"id":9556,"date":"2019-11-12T21:50:39","date_gmt":"2019-11-12T21:50:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chinesemoment.com\/chinese-words-phrases\/before-and-after\/"},"modified":"2019-11-12T21:50:39","modified_gmt":"2019-11-12T21:50:39","slug":"before-and-after","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chinesemoment.com\/fr\/before-and-after\/","title":{"rendered":"Before and After"},"content":{"rendered":"
These two words–before and after–are often used in daily life. But their usages in Chinese are different from English. Let’s look at the words here:  <\/p>\n

Before: y\u01d0 qián, \u4ee5\u524d<\/p>\n

After: y\u01d0 hòu, \u4ee5\u540e<\/p>\n

The first difference here is the position of these two words. In English, it’s "before\/after doing something". But in Chinese, it’s "doing something before\/after". They’re the same meaning but the position is reversd . For example:<\/p>\n

(1) Before going home = huí ji\u0101 y\u01d0 qián (huí ji\u0101=go home; y\u01d0 qián=before)<\/p>\n

(2) After going home = huí ji\u0101 y\u01d0 hòu (y\u01d0 hòu=after)<\/p>\n

Chinese learners in Britain and America need to get used to the reverse of the position, especially while listening. <\/p>\n

Here is the other difference. In English, the phrase with before and after could be at the beginning or in the end of a sentence. But in Chinese, the phrase o<\/em>nly should be at the beginning of a sentence. For example:<\/p>\n

(1) I will go to supermarket before I go home =Before going home, I will go to supermarket.<\/p>\n

     Huí ji\u0101 y\u01d0 qián, w\u01d2 qù ch\u0101o shì \u3002 (\u56de\u5bb6\u4ee5\u524d\uff0c\u6211\u53bb\u8d85\u5e02\u3002)<\/p>\n

    (huí ji\u0101g=o home; y\u01d0 qián=before; w\u01d2=I; qù=to go; ch\u0101o shì=supermarket)  <\/p>\n

(2) I will go home after I go shopping =After going shopping , I will go home.<\/p>\n

     M\u01cei d\u014dngx\u012b y\u01d0 hòu, w\u01d2 huí ji\u0101 \u3002(\u4e70\u4e1c\u897f\u4ee5\u540e\uff0c\u6211\u56de\u5bb6\u3002)<\/p>\n

     (m\u01cei d\u014dn\u0261 xi=shopping; y\u01d0 hòu=after; w\u01d2=I; huí ji\u0101=go home)  <\/p>\n

So here are the sentece strctures:<\/p>\n

(1) Action A + y\u01d0 qián,  Subject + action B.<\/p>\n

        It means: Before doing action A, I do action B.<\/p>\n

(2) Action A + y\u01d0 hòu,  Subject + action B.<\/p>\n

       It means: After doing action A, I do action B. <\/p>\n

Some final words: learning language is not to o<\/em>nly memorize the rules but to communicate with local people. "OK, I understand" is not enough. Lots of practice is necessary. Remember, practice makes perfect. If you have any questions, feel free to leave me a message. I will reply as soon as possible. 
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