Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar

iNdiCatiNG ComPletioN aNd talkiNG aBoUt the PaSt

37.8

去年 qùnián last year

前年 qiánnián the year before last

C49.2

37.8.1 adverbs that refer to past time

Adverbs that refer to past time may be used with action verbs, stative verbs, or adjectival verbs.

When the verb is a stative verb or adjectival verb, an adverb may be the only marker of past

time. Here are the most common adverbs that refer to past time.

以前 yǐqián ‘before, previously, in the past’

我以前在外国住了几年。(action verb)

我以前在外國住了幾年。

Wǒ yǐqián zài wàiguó zhù le jǐnián.

I previously lived abroad for a few years.

小英以前是大明的女朋友。(stative verb)

Xiǎoyīng yǐqián shì Dàmíng de nǚ péngyou.

Xiaoying used to be Daming’s girlfriend.

我以前很喜欢他。(stative verb)

我以前很喜歡他。

Wǒ yǐqián hěn xǐhuan tā.

I used to like him a lot.

汽油以前很便宜。(adjectival verb)

Qìyóu yǐqián hěn piányi.

In the past, gasoline was cheap.

过去/過去 guòqù ‘in the past’

他过去是英文老师。(stative verb)

他過去是英文老師。

Tā guòqù shì Yīngwén lǎoshī.

He used to be an English teacher.

从前/從前 cóngqián ‘previously’

中国从前有很多人不识字。(stative verb)

中國從前有很多人不識字。

Zhōngguó cóngqián yǒu hěn duō rén bù shí zì.

In the past, China had a lot of people who were illiterate.

These adverbs may also be used when talking about situations that customarily occurred in

the past.

我从前天天去公园散步。

我從前天天去公園散步。

Wǒ cóngqián tiāntiān qù gōngyuán sànbù.

I used to take a walk in the park every day.

我过去每年都带孩子到海边去玩。
我過去每年都帶孩子到海邊去玩。
Wǒ guòqù měi nián dōu dài háizi dào hǎibiān qù wán.
In the past, every year I used to take the children to the beach to play.