How to say “in advance” in Chinese
in advance
“In advance” in Chinese is 事先, shì xiān: the meaning, a recording of how it sounds, the characters stroke by stroke and examples.
How to pronounce it
事先 is read shì xiān: 2 syllables. The tone is part of the word: with another melody you get another word, or just a jumble of sounds.
How to write it
先生 means “born earlier”: a respectful way to address an elder.
Strokes go in order: top to bottom and left to right, horizontal before vertical. Tap a character to open its page, with the strokes shown large and the words it appears in. To train your hand, print a handwriting sheet for “事先”.
Examples
Sentences from the course lessons with 事先. Tap the sound icon to listen.
- 我想去看你，要事先打电话吗？wǒxiǎngqùkànnǐ,yàoshìxiāndǎdiànhuàmaI'd like to visit you — should I call in advance?
More words from the lesson “Urgent work”
Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say “in advance” in Chinese?
“In advance” in Chinese is 事先, pinyin shìxiān.
What does 事先 mean?
事先 (shìxiān) means “in advance”.
How do you write 事先?
事先 is 2 characters: 事 (shì) — matter, affair; 先 (xiān) — first, before. The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.
How do you pronounce 事先?
事先 is read shìxiān. Tones: shì — fourth tone, xiān — first tone. The page has a native speaker recording.
“in advance” in the lesson “Urgent work”
This word is from the topic “Time: at once and little by little” of HSK 5. In the lesson you hear it in a dialogue, build a sentence with it and say it out loud. Start for free, no sign-up needed.
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