Chinese Grammar: Talking about time with 以前, 以后 and 的时候

For Lupishu, there’s a BEFORE and an AFTER - before Nincha found him, and after he became part of the Nincha family. But how do you say that in Chinese? Now that you and Lupishu have learned how to tell the time and talk about dates precisely, it’s time to learn how to talk about time in general, without having to specify when precisely.

To talk about the past and the future, you’ll be needing two words: 以前 (yǐqián), to talk about the past, and 以后 (yǐhòu), to talk about the future. As you'll see, both words are quite simple to use. Add to these two words the word 的 时候, a little practice and you’ll be talking about events in time like a pro in no time.

Talk about the past and the future in general

Both 以前 (yǐqián) and 以后 (yǐhòu) work the same way. They are used to talk about something that has happened at an unspecified time in the past, or that will be happening at an unspecified time in the future. Let’s start with 以前 (yǐqián) to talk about the past.

以前, before

You can use 以前 to talk about something that happened at an unspecified time in the past. It is similar to “before”, or “in the past” in English. 以前 is a flexible time word so that you can place it either before or after the subject. Both are correct.

Structure

[以前+S+V+O]
[S+以前+V+O]

Examples

以前我 住 在 北京。 Before, I lived in Beijing.
我以前住 在 北京。I lived in Beijing before.

以前他 学 中文。Before, he learned Chinese.
他以前学 中文。He’s learned Chinese before.

以前她 说 汉语。Before, she spoke Chinese.
她以前说 汉语。She spoke Chinese before.

以后 to talk about the future in general

以后 is used to describe things that will happen at an unspecified time in the future, and, like 以前, can be used to talk about both very close upcoming events and events far away in the future. 以后 here can be translated as “in the future”, or “later”.

Structure

[以后， S+ V + O]
[S+以后+V+O]

Just like 以前, 以后 can be placed indifferently before or after the subject when you’re talking about time in general. It is common to add a comma after 以后 if it’s placed at the beginning of the sentence.

Examples

以后，他 要 学 中文。Later, he’ll learn Chinese.
他以后要 学 中文。He’ ll learn Chinese later.

以后，我 要 去 北京 上学。In the future, I’ll go study in Beijing.
我以后要 去 北京 上学。I’ll go study in Beijing in the future.

以后，很多 人 都 会 去 中国。In the future, many people will go to China.
很多 人以后都 会 去 中国。Many people will go to China in the future.

Before a specific action/event/time

When you want to talk about something that happened in the past or the future at a more specific moment, such as a specific event, you can also use 以前 and 以后. You can put an event, a specific time or an action before 以前 or 以后.

Structure

[action/event/time+ 以前/以后， S+V+O]

This pattern is close to “before/after something, something happened” in English. Do note that, when talking about a specific event, action or time, 以前 and 以后 must always be placed after the event/time in question. 以前 and 以后 cannot be placed before the event/action/time.

Examples

回家以前，我 吃 了 苹果。
I ate an apple before I went home.

睡觉以前，我 刷 了 牙。
Before I went to sleep, I brushed my teeth.

十 点以前，我 在 家。
I was at home before 10 o’clock.

吃饭以后，我们 去 看 电影。
We’re going to go see a movie after we eat.

去 中国 以后，他 学会 了 写 汉字。
He learned how to write Chinese characters after he went to China.

两 天以后，我 去 北京。
I’ll go to Beijing in 2 days.

下午 两 点以后，我 去 医院。
I’ m going to the hospital after 2 p.m.

Talk about when with 的 时候

的 时候 is very useful to talk about when it’s the moment to do something or when something happened, as it literally means “when”.

If we break 的 时候 down, it’s composed of 的, which you’re now super familiar with and means “of”, and 时候 which means (a moment in) time. So, in other words, it means “of time”, i.e. when. To use 的 时候 in a sentence, first say what action/ event you’re talking about, and add 的 时候 afterward.

Structure

Phrase 1 + 的 时候， phrase 2.

Example

我 回家的 时候，他 在 睡觉。
He was sleeping by the time I got back home.

Use 的 时候 to talk about the present, past and future

的 时候 is very flexible, and you can use it to talk about a moment taking place in the past, present, and future. Nifty, no? Let’s see how that works through a few examples.

Examples

Past

我 小的 时候，最 爱 的 运动 是 游泳。
When I was a kid, my favorite sport was swimming.

Present

你 去 超市的 时候，可以 也 买 卫生纸 吗？
When you go to the supermarket, can you also buy toilet paper?

Future

等 的 你 生日的 时候， 妈妈 给 你 买。
Wait for when it’s your birthday and mama will buy it for you.

As you saw, 以前 and 以后 when used on their own, can be put indifferently either before or after a subject. Very flexible isn’t it? For example, you can both say: 下午 两 点 以后，我 去 医院。Or 我 下午 两 点 以后 去 医院。I’ m going to the hospital after 2 p.m.