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How to Say ‘Before 5 pm tomorrow’ in Simplified Chinese

明天下午五点前

míng tiān xià wǔ wǔ diǎn qián

[ming tyan xiàwǔ wǔ diǎn chyen]

💬 Usage Tip: Time words stack from biggest to smallest, and 前 "before" comes at the very end: day, then part of day, then hour, then 前. Try 今天晚上八点前 "before 8 pm tonight".

Phrase Breakdown

明天下午

míng tiān xià wǔ

tomorrow afternoon

明天 (míngtiān) means 'tomorrow' and 下午 (xiàwǔ) means 'afternoon'. In Chinese, the larger time unit comes first.

Example

明天下午见。

See you tomorrow afternoon.

Words in this phrase

明天

míng tiān

[ming tyan]

tomorrow

Refers to the day after today.

Example

明天我要去医院。

I am going to the hospital tomorrow.

下午

xià wǔ

[xiàwǔ]

afternoon

The time of day between noon and evening.

Example

我们下午见。

See you in the afternoon.

五点前

wǔ diǎn qián

before five o'clock

五点 (wǔ diǎn) means 'five o'clock'. 前 (qián) after a time means 'before'.

Example

请五点前到。

Please arrive before five.

Words in this phrase

五点

wǔ diǎn

[wǔ diǎn]

five o'clock

The time 5:00.

Example

我们五点见。

Let's meet at five o'clock.

前

qián

[chyen]

before

Used after a time or event to show that something must happen earlier than that point.

Example

请在用餐前确认取消政策。

Please confirm the cancellation policy before dining.

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