事先
HSK 4 (2021)Old HSK 5
事先 (shìxiān) · in advance
事先 (shìxiān) means “in advance; beforehand”. It is written with 2 characters: 事 (matter) + 先 (first). It is an HSK 4 word in the 2021 standard.
How 事先 is built
The characters
事 shì · matter
What 事 is made of
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 口kǒu — mouth
- 冂 — frame
- 丨 — vertical stroke
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 冂 — frame
- 彐jì — snout
- 二 — two strokes
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 二 — two strokes
- 亅 — hook
先 xiān · first
What 先 is made of
- 土tǔ — earth
- 十 — ten
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 丨 — vertical stroke
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 十 — ten
- 儿ér — child
- 丿 — falling stroke
- 乚 — hook stroke
Origin hint: Someone stepping 止 in front of another person 儿 (from the Make Me a Hanzi dataset; treat as a memory aid where history is uncertain)
Example sentences
你应该事先告诉我。Nǐ yīnggāi shìxiān gàosu wǒ.You should have told me beforehand.
去之前要事先打电话吗？Qù zhīqián yào shìxiān dǎ diànhuà ma?Do I need to call in advance before going?
Questions about 事先
What does 事先 mean?
事先 (shìxiān) means “in advance; beforehand”.
How do you pronounce 事先?
事先 is pronounced shìxiān.
Which HSK level is 事先?
事先 is in HSK 4 (2021) and Old HSK 5.
Related words
- 没事儿méishìrit is all right
- 故事gùshistory
- 好事hǎoshìgood thing
- 事情shìqingthing
- 同事tóngshìcolleague
- 本事běnshiability
- 从事cóngshìto work in
- 事故shìgùaccident
- 事件shìjiànevent
- 事实shìshífact
Learn 事先 with its group
It is part of HSK 4 (2021) · Group 49: a short group with quick checks and spaced repeats.