ぜん
Meanings
Adverb
Noun
1. ago; since; before; previous
Kanji used
by means of
in front of
Pitch accent
ぜん
Top 700
Used in vocabulary (3 in total)
before one's birth; before one was born
Examples (132 in total)
Is it worse than before?
Did you live here before?
I used to keep a diary.
We're not as young as we used to be.
She is no longer what she used to be.
There used to be a pond around here.
He is not as fat as he was.
I used to go to church on Sundays.
Bell used to live in London, didn't he?
I'm not as rich as I was.
I used to take a walk every morning.
My sight isn't as good as it used to be.
We used to live in Kobe.
His mother used to be a singer.
The inadequacies of the system have been pointed out before.
Tom used to be a freelance photographer.
She was believed to have been a film star before.
He is better off than before.
Haven't we met before?
I had never seen her before that time.
She had some trouble with him before.
He used to say so, but now he doesn't.
I've heard that story before.
He came a little earlier than he used to.
I used to walk to work.
I remember seeing her before.
I've seen that picture before.
He used to walk to his office.
I have been to the store before.
She made the same mistake as before.
I have read the novel before.
There used to be a big pond around here.
I had never been late for school before.
He is less healthy than he used to be.
I have visited Kyoto before.
There used to be an old temple here.
Has he stayed here before?
Kyoto was the former capital of Japan.
I always thought that Shirley and Alan would get together.
I visited Paris long ago.
It was said that the lady had been an actress.
He is not strong as before.
I've been to Hokkaido before.
There used to be a store right here.
He visited Italy before.
This is the temple which we used to visit.
I have climbed Mt. Fuji before.
I've been to Sapporo before.
Have you ever been in Australia before?
This city isn't as busy as it used to be.
Jane has read "Snow Country" before.
He used to smoke, but now he doesn't.
There used to be a drugstore on that corner.
There used to be a small shrine around here.
Tom used to eat a lot of junk food.
I used to smoke. I was quite a heavy smoker.
I used to have an old Rolls Royce.
I remember meeting you before.
I've seen that face somewhere before.
I remember having seen him somewhere before.
It seemed that he had been very happy.
I remember meeting that man before.
I have a feeling I've been here before.
I have heard of it before.
Since I'd never met her before, I didn't know her.
This place isn't as safe as it used to be.
The knife we used to cut the bread with was sharp.
I remember having seen this movie before.
There used to be big trees around the pond.
I recognized him immediately since we had previously met.
He studies much harder than before.
She writes much better now than she used to.
There used to be a castle on this hill.
The old shrine used to stand there.
My father used to go to work by bus.
He used to read a lot.
People used to think that only humans could use language.
He used to go out at night.
He used to come here on Mondays.
Soccer is more popular in Japan than it used to be.
If anything, my father seems happier than before.
He used to go to school by bicycle, but he takes a bus now.
I don't play tennis as much as I used to.
He said he had been to Hawaii before.
There used to be lots of fireflies around here.
Have you ever been to this beach before?
My father used to drink beer, but now he drinks sake.
The company he used to work for went into bankruptcy last month.
My father used to smoke, but now he doesn't.
He is no longer the shy boy he was.
Tom used to work for a big firm in Boston.
Tom used to take a walk every morning before breakfast.
Tom was a professional gambler before he met Mary.
There used to be a coffee shop near the park.
I had met her many times before then.
There was a tall tree in front of my house.
Having met the girl before, I recognized her at once.
I may have told you this story before.
My wife remembered having been in the town before.
I may have seen that film before, but I can hardly remember it.
I used to play with my sister in the park.
She looked as though she had seen me somewhere before.
I was bored because I had seen the movie before.
"Haven't we met somewhere before?" asked the student.
My father would often go fishing.
I used to take a walk early in the morning.
There used to be a lot of frogs in this pond.
New York is one of the cities that I previously thought that I wanted to visit.
She had never spoken to him before that time.
I used to go fishing quite often, but now I rarely go.
He still writes novels from time to time, but not as often as he used to.
Tom and Mary used to often eat lunch together.
I was sure I had never seen her before.
There had never been any ill-feeling between them until that night.
He is not the active person he used to be.
I'll do my best, but I'll not be able to finish it before Thursday at best.
There used to be a big pine tree in front of my house.
There used to be a green field here; now there's a supermarket.
She was only a shadow of her former self after her illness.
I easily found Mr. Harrington because I had seen him before.
They used to get on well together but now they are always quarreling.
Thanks to these discoveries, man's life span has become twice as long as before.
He used to eat out every day, but now he can't afford it.
Before Einstein, scientists used to think that space had no end.
All subscriptions must be paid before the end of this year.
I had met him once before.
Ken has been to England before.
The river has become much cleaner than before.
The voyage from England to India used to take 6 months.
I told you before that you should ask your mother first.
What you say now isn't consistent with what you said before.
I had lived in Sendai for ten years before I visited Matsushima.