DICTIONARY
The Chinese word qian - 前 - qián
(front in Chinese)
Phonetic script (Hanyu Pinyin)
qián
Listen to pronunciation
(Mandarin = standard Chinese without accent)
You're listening to the natural voice of a native speaker of Mandarin Chinese.
English translations
front, forward, before, ago, former
Chinese character and stroke order animation"How do I write 前 ( qián ) correctly?"
The strokes that all Chinese characters are composed of are to be written in a certain order which has originally been defined by Chinese calligraphy. Writing all characters according to the same rules assures that their intended shape and style are generally preserved even if written by different writers.
This dictionary shows you the correct stroke order as an animation for all characters so you can learn and understand how to write the character correctly. :
The strokes that all Chinese characters are composed of are to be written in a certain order which has originally been defined by Chinese calligraphy. Writing all characters according to the same rules assures that their intended shape and style are generally preserved even if written by different writers.
This dictionary shows you the correct stroke order as an animation for all characters so you can learn and understand how to write the character correctly. :
The traditional Chinese characters of qián are identical with the modern (simplified) characters displayed above.
Chinese Pinyin example sentence with 前 ( qian / qián ) ⓘWriting in Pinyin
Before using this Pinyin example sentence, consider that Chinese characters should always be your first choice in written communication.
If you cannot use Chinese characters, it is preferable to use the Pinyin with tones. Only use the Pinyin without tones if there's no other option (e.g. writing a text message from/to a mobile phone that doesn't support special characters such as ā, í, ǒ, ù).
Before using this Pinyin example sentence, consider that Chinese characters should always be your first choice in written communication.
If you cannot use Chinese characters, it is preferable to use the Pinyin with tones. Only use the Pinyin without tones if there's no other option (e.g. writing a text message from/to a mobile phone that doesn't support special characters such as ā, í, ǒ, ù).
Wo jia qianmian you yi ge gongyuan.
Wǒ jiā qiánmian yǒu yī ge gōngyuán.– English translation: There's a park in front of my house.
Topic
Character complexity
前 is composed of 9 strokes and therefore is of low complexity compared to the other simplified Chinese characters (average: 13.1 strokes).
Tags and additional information
(Meaning of individual characters, character components etc.)
Imagine the two dots as two horns of a buffalo that is charging forward
前 ( qian / qián ) belongs to the 100 most common Chinese characters (rank 85)
前 ( qian / qián ) belongs to the 100 most common Chinese characters (rank 85)
Chinese example words containing the character 前 ( qian / qián )
从前 ( cóngqián = formerly ), 跟前 ( gēnqián = close to ), 面前 ( miànqián = in front of ), 目前 ( mùqián = now ), 前辈 ( qiánbèi = senior ), 前边 ( qiánbiān = the front ), 前进 ( qiánjìn = advance ), 前面 ( qiánmiàn = in front of ), 前台 ( qiántái = reception ), 前天 ( qiántiān = the day before yesterday ), 提前 ( tíqián = in advance ), 眼前 ( yǎnqián = at present ), 以前 ( yǐqián = before )
Other characters that are pronounced qián in Chinese
Report missing or erroneous translation of qian in English
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Version 5.52 / Last updated: 2026-11-03