Most learners of Chinese encounter the terms 以前 and 以后 fairly early on in
their studies. They’re probably the easiest way to sequence events in time in
Chinese, but getting them right still takes some effort and practice. Here’s a
heads-up on using these words correctly.
Before and after
With an event or action
Let’s first look at using 以前 and 以后 to talk about events happening before or
after other things. The basic structure is the same for 以前 and 以后:
[event] 以后，[something happens]
We’ve deliberately kept the terms simple here. The structure above is used to
say that something happens after that event. The same structure can be used to
talk about past or future events - it simply sequences the events in time. You
can swap 以后 (after) for 以前 (before) - the structure is the same.
Have a look at some example sentences for this pattern with 以前 and 以后:
Notice how the basic structure is the same for 以前 and 以后, and how versatile
this pattern is. You can put pretty any event or action in the first part, and
use that to sequence the other event in relation to it.
With an amount of time
You can also use this pattern to talk about things happening before or after a
specific amount of time. The structure is the same:
[amount of time] 以后，[something happens]
Again, you can swap 以后 (after) for 以前 (before). This pattern works the same
way as the one above. Have a look at some examples:
很久以前，在一个很遥远的恒星系……
hěn jiǔ yǐqián, zài yí gè hěn yáoyuǎn de héngxīngxì……
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...
Notice how can fit this pattern into different parts of the sentence. We’ve
avoided giving any rigid sentence structures for this pattern, as it’s usually
better to focus on examples and getting lots of practice.
Amount of time before or after an event
You can also combine the two patterns described above, to talk about things
happening a certain amount of time before or after an event. The structure for
this is:
[event] [amount of time] 以后，[something happens]
Have a look at some examples (we’ve included some trickier ones to keep you on
your toes):
Some of the above sentences might be a little difficult at your current level, but fear not - with more practice they will become easy.
General past and future
Finally, you can use the words 以前 and 以后 to talk about the general past and future, without specifying any points in time. Have a look at some examples: