Chinese symbol for “ago”
前
qián
front; forward; ahead; first
The closest CC-CEDICT match for ago is 前 (qián), defined as: front; forward; ahead; first; top (followed by a number); future.
Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.
Characters and stroke order
Other Chinese words for “ago”
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 之前 | zhī qián | before; prior to |
| 以前 | yǐ qián | before; formerly |
| 距今 | jù jīn | before the present; (a long period) ago |
Related words
Other words that share a character with 前.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 目前 | mù qián | at the present time; currently |
| 之前 | zhī qián | before; prior to |
| 以前 | yǐ qián | before; formerly |
| 前往 | qián wǎng | to leave for; to proceed towards; to go to |
| 面前 | miàn qián | in front of; facing |
| 当前 (當前) | dāng qián | the present time; to be faced with |
See also: Japanese symbol for “ago”.
Data: CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0); Unihan Database (Unicode License v3); Make Me a Hanzi (Arphic Public License (graphics.txt); LGPL-3.0-or-later (dictionary.txt)); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.