Chinese word

空前

Pronunciation

Pinyinkōng qián

Meaning

  • adjectiveunprecedented

Example

这个项目引起了空前的关注。zhè ge xiàng mù yín qǐ le kōng qián de guān zhù

This project has attracted unprecedented attention.

Illustration for 空前 (unprecedented)

More examples

全球疫情造成了空前的公共卫生挑战。quán qiú yì qíng zào chéng le kōng qián de gōng gòng wèi shēng tiǎo zhàn

The global pandemic has created an unprecedented public health challenge.

Core concept

A development whose reach or intensity breaks entirely from the known past.

Common phrases

  • 空前的成就kōng qián de chéng jiù

    unprecedented achievement

  • 空前的规模kōng qián de guī mó

    unprecedented scale

  • 空前的挑战kōng qián de tiǎo zhàn

    unprecedented challenge

Similar words

前所未有qián suǒ wèi yǒu: Never seen before, marking something that has not occurred at any earlier time.
前代未闻qián dài wèi wén: Unheard of before, suggesting an unusually rare and surprising event or piece of information.
史无前例shǐ wú qián lì: Without a historical precedent, referring to an event or situation absent from past records.
空前绝后kōng qián jué hòu: Without a parallel in either the past or the future, highlighting exceptional importance or scale.

Definition in Chinese

以往没有过的；常指在规模、影响或程度上超出以往的状态。yí wǎng méi yǒu guò de cháng zhǐ zài guī mó yíng xiǎng huò chéng dù shàng chāo chū yí wǎng de zhuàng tài

Word origin

In 空前 (kōngqián, "unprecedented"), 空 (kōng, "empty") suggests the absence of a prior instance and 前 (qián, "before") locates that absence in earlier time.

Usage tips

  • Its force concerns a break from earlier experience, and it can describe beneficial, harmful, or neutral developments, so its tone comes from the noun and context.

Other meanings

  • unheard-ofadjective

Opposites

Related words

  • 空前绝后kōng qián jué hòuunprecedented and unsurpassedidiom
  • 空前未有kōng qián wèi yǒunever before seenidiom

Word lists with this word