When talking about past events in Japanese, you’ll often want to say things like “three days ago” or “two years ago.” In English, we use the word “ago” to describe how long before the present something happened. In Japanese, the equivalent expression is 「〜前まえ」.

Let’s dive into how to use 前まえ correctly!

Using 「前まえ」 to Say “~ Ago”

In Japanese, 「前まえ」 is placed after a time expression to indicate how long ago something happened.

Basic Formula:

[Time duration] + 前まえ

For example:

• 1時間前いちじかんまえ → one hour ago
• 3日前みっかまえ → three days ago
• 2週間前にしゅうかんまえ → two weeks ago
• 5年前ごねんまえ → five years ago

Example Sentences

1. 私わたしは1時間前いちじかんまえに昼ひるごはんを食たべました。
   (Watashi wa ichi-jikan mae ni hirugohan o tabemashita.)
   → I ate lunch one hour ago.
2. 3日前みっかまえに映画えいがを見みました。
   (Mikka mae ni eiga o mimashita.)
   → I watched a movie three days ago.
3. 2週間前にしゅうかんまえに日本にほんに来きました。
   (Nishuukan mae ni Nihon ni kimashita.)
   → I came to Japan two weeks ago.
4. 5年前ごねんまえは学生がくせいでした。
   (Go-nen mae wa gakusei deshita.)
   → Five years ago, I was a student.

Common Mistakes

「前まえ」 goes after the time duration, not before!

• 前3日まえみっか → Incorrect
• 3日前みっかまえ → Correct

Don’t confuse 前まえ (ago) with 前まえ (before) in other contexts!

• 授業じゅぎょうの前まえに勉強べんきょうしました。 (Jugyoo no mae ni benkyoo shimashita.)
  → “I studied before class.” (This does NOT mean “X hours ago.”)

Want to Sound More Natural?

If you want to sound more fluent, you can use さっき or この前まえ for casual conversations!

さっき → A little while ago / just now

• さっき食たべたよ。(Sakki tabeta yo.) → I ate just now.

この前まえ → The other day / some time ago

• この前まえの旅行りょこうは楽たのしかった！(Kono mae no ryokoo wa tanoshikatta!)
  → The trip the other day was fun!

Quick Recap

• Use [time duration] + 前まえ to say “~ ago.”
• Place 前まえ AFTER the time word (e.g., 1週間前いっしゅうかんまえ, not 前1週間まえいっしゅうかん).
• Use さっき (just now) and この前まえ (the other day) for more natural speech.

Now, try making your own sentences! What’s something you did one week ago (1週間前いっしゅうかんまえ)? Write it in the comments!

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