English–Chinese
“in the past” in Chinese
How to say “in the past” in Chinese
“In the past” in Chinese is 以前 (yǐ qián).
The earlier side of a timeline, covering either one earlier moment or a continuing way of life before a reference time.
Example sentences with 以前
他以前是医生。tā yǐ qián shì yī shēng
He used to be a doctor.
Tips for using 以前
- English often puts time after the subject, but Chinese can place this word first to show when the rest of the sentence happens.
Other Chinese words for “in the past”
我过去常去那家店。wǒ guò qù cháng qù nà jiā diàn
I often went to that store in the past.
从前我住在北京。cóng qián wǒ zhù zài běi jīng
In the past, I lived in Beijing.
以往他总是迟到，现在改了。yí wǎng tā zǒng shì chí dào xiàn zài gǎi le
In the past, he was always late, but now he has changed.
他昔日在这家公司工作过。tā xī rì zài zhè jiā gōng sī gōng zuò guò
He worked for this company in the past.