ゼン
Meanings
Noun
1. last (i.e. immediately preceding); previous; ex-; former
2. pre- (e.g. premodern)
before the name of an era
Suffix
3. before
after a noun
Adverb
Noun
Old-fashioned
4. before; earlier
Pitch accent
Used in vocabulary (184 in total)
front part; fore; front
previous time; last time; previous installment; previous instalment; previous session
future; prospects; outlook; journey ahead; distance yet to cover
last night
previous remarks
advance payment; money paid in advance
previous conviction
ibid.; the above-mentioned publication
presence (of a nobleman, the emperor, etc.); outrider (person riding horseback in the lead position of a cavalcade); My Lord; My Lady
previous conviction; criminal record; previous offense; previous offence
front row
former (incumbent); predecessor
morning session (stock exchange); morning trading
natural; right; proper; naturally; as a matter of course; rightly
just before
antiquity; the previous era
front and rear; front and back; before and after; around; about; order; context
prior; beforehand; in advance; before the fact; ex ante
just before; on the verge of; on the brink of; just in front of; just ahead of
before one's eyes
(weather) front; front line; forward area; action zone
before one's very eyes; under one's nose; imminence; close at hand
forefoot; forefeet; foreleg; forelimb
while alive; during one's lifetime
first half
the former
front part; frontage; facade; initial pledge (e.g. election); opening slogan
precedent
before the gate; in front of the gate
(in the) presence (of); in front (of); before (someone)
frontmost; a short time ago; a little while ago; just now
last night; the previous night; night before (Christmas, etc.); eve (of festival, major event, etc.)
omen; portent; sign; premonition; harbinger; precursor
pre-war days; before the war
aforementioned; above-mentioned
front tooth
pre-era; BC; BCE
hors d'oeuvre; appetizer; appetiser; starter
the preceding year; the previous year; last year
opening performance; opening act; curtain raiser; minor performer; minor storyteller; subordinate part
first term; first half-year; preceding period; early period
former king; late king
before meals
previous work; preceding work; first crop grown in a double-cropped field; preceding crop
preliminary step; first step
front wheel
unprecedented; record-breaking
last century; ancient times
before god; before an altar
forward somersault; forward roll
the time before last
aforesaid; above-mentioned; said; above
premodern; old-fashioned; outmoded; antiquated
personal history
previous generation; former ages
ex-wife; former wife; previous wife
aforementioned; above-mentioned; given above; previous
dispensing with the preliminaries ...; omitting the previous part
frontal lobe
front seat
prior chapter
preceding fiscal year
front gate
last position; previous job; predecessor
prelude; overture
preoperative (preparation, diagnosis, etc.)
premarital; prenuptial
continued (from)
previous; former
previous existence
in the face of the enemy; before the enemy
prelude; overture
before sunset
before one's eyes
last week; the week before
the above sentence; the foregoing remark; preamble (to a statute, constitution, etc.); opening part of a letter (used for season's greetings, asking after someone's health, etc.)
preceding clause; previous paragraph; antecedent (of a ratio)
front room; front parlor; lobby; anterior ventricle
previous volume
two days before; day before yesterday
preceding paragraph; first part
(before a) Buddhist altar; before the Buddha; offering placed on a Buddhist altar; incense money; condolatory offering
Former Han dynasty (China, 206 BCE-9 CE); Western Han dynasty
predecessor; people of former times
previous writing; first of two books; previous letter
prehistoric age
where the wind blows
former opinion
foreground; front view
last month; previous month
front; forehead
preceding paragraph, section, or verse
Rikuzen (former province located in parts of present-day Miyagi and Iwate prefectures)
before the spirit of the deceased
front end
same as above; ditto; ibid.
unprecedented in history; unheard-of; epoch-making
before use; pre-service; pre-operational
first half of one's life
(one) before last; two before; two in front (e.g. rows)
Uzen (former province located in parts of present-day Yamagata Prefecture)
previous president (immediately preceding the incumbent); former president
one's previous name
premodern; feudalistic
in front of the customer (guest, visitor, etc.); before the customer
anterograde amnesia
plantain (esp. Asian plantain, Plantago asiatica)
muzzle loading
(one's) previous marriage
forehead
previous engagement; previous promise
prehistory
foreshock
former conduct
one's previous letter; one's last letter
front-line troops
foothills; first range of mountains
former post
car in front; the car ahead; preceding car
preceding issue
the first half-year; first half of the year
two years before
preceding article or entry
prefrontal cortex
frontal bone (of the skull)
preconscious (psychoanalysis)
preprocessing; pretreatment
loan; advance
prior to childbirth
forebrain; prosencephalon
preceding page; anterior pituitary
nonreligious wedding ceremony; civil wedding ceremony
anterior cruciate ligament; ACL
front of center field; front of centre field
anterior chamber (of the eyes)
town originally built around a Shinto shrine
premenstrual dysphoric disorder; PMDD
premenstrual dysphoric disorder; PMDD
premenstrual syndrome; PMS
previous mention; mentioning previously
(biochemical) precursor
presheaf; anterior layer
aforementioned; previous case; antecedent
previous line
wheel tracks left by vehicles that have passed before
plantain seed
porch; portico; colonnaded entranceway; ante-hall
anterior cingulate cortex
one's former post
former crown prince; the late crown prince
front wheel
one's former address
precancerous lesion
frontalis muscle
one's previous doctor
prior to death; during one's lifetime
forward edge of the battle area
former men of wisdom and virtue
preregistration
rhinitis sicca anterior
subcritical nuclear experiment
anterior cingulate gyrus
preequilibrium process
vestibular bulb; bulb of the vestibule
preimplantation death
prothoracic gland
precancerous state; premalignant state
Buddha prior to Gautama; Gautama Buddha; Shakyamuni
premating isolation
superior frontal gyrus
inferior frontal gyrus
premenstrual dysphoric disorder; PMDD
appoggiatura
Examples (5 in total)
I had an abortion two years ago.
He came to Japan two years ago.
She was a Smith before her marriage.