Chinese word

跟前

Pronunciation

Pinyingēn qián

Meaning

  • nounin front of

Example

他就坐在我跟前，一直看书。tā jiù zuò zài wǒ gēn qián yì zhí kàn shū

He sat right in front of me and kept reading.

Illustration for 跟前 (in front of)

More examples

她站在商店门跟前，等着朋友。tā zhàn zài shāng diàn mén gēn qián děng zhe péng yǒu

She stood right in front of the store entrance, waiting for her friend.

Core concept

The small area right around a person, especially the space before them or close at their side.

Common phrases

  • 来到跟前lái dào gēn qián

    come up close

  • 站在跟前zhàn zài gēn qián

    stand in front of

  • 走近跟前zǒu jìn gēn qián

    walk up close

Similar words

面前miàn qián: The area before a person or object, on the side that faces the viewer.
眼前yǎn qián: The immediate visible area before the eyes, or something seen there.
身边shēn biān: The area close around a person where nearby people or belongings are.
前面qián miàn: The part at the front of a person or object, or the area in front of it.

Definition in Chinese

指在某人身旁或面前、与其距离很近的位置，多用于口语的位置表述。zhǐ zài mǒu rén shēn páng huò miàn qián yǔ qí jù lí hěn jìn de wèi zhì duō yòng yú kóu yǔ de wèi zhì biǎo shù

Word origin

The compound joins 跟 (gēn, "with or following") with 前 (qián, "front"), so a person's front becomes a reference point for a place that is close at hand.

Usage tips

  • Unlike a general place word, this expression normally takes a person as its reference point, which makes it useful for locating someone or something in relation to that person.

Other meanings

  • besidenoun
  • nearbynoun

Opposites

Word lists with this word