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在前

Mandarin · pinyin zài qián

ahead
formerly
in the past

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Characters in this entry

在: zài · be at, in, on; consist in, rest
前: qián · in front, forward; preceding

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

4–2 · zai4 qian2

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

adv

previously; formerly; once upon a time; in the past

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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