Japanese Conversation · Level 37
90 words
Japanese word
数年前
Pronunciation
Romajisūnenmae
Meaning
- adverba few years ago
Example
数年前、私はこの町に引っ越しました。sū nen mae watashi wa ko no machi ni hi kko shi ma shi ta
A few years ago, I moved to this town.
More examples
数年前から、毎朝この公園を走っています。sū nen mae ka ra mai asa ko no kō en o hashi tte i ma su
I have been running in this park every morning for a few years.
Core concept
Marks an event as occurring a small, unspecified number of years before the time under discussion.
Common phrases
数年前にsū nen mae ni
a few years ago
数年前からsū nen mae ka ra
since a few years ago
数年前までsū nen mae ma de
until a few years ago
Similar words
以前izen: At some time in the past, without specifying how many years ago.
Definition in Japanese
現在または話題の基準時から数年以前の時点を示す。gen zai ma ta wa wa dai no ki jun ji ka ra sū nen i zen no ji ten o shime su
Word origin
数年前 (sūnenmae) is formed from 数 (sū, "several"), 年 (nen, "year"), and 前 (mae, "before"), giving the sense of several years before.
Usage tips
- 数年前 (sūnenmae) does not normally mean exactly three years ago, because 数 (sū, "several") indicates an approximate number.