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超前 (chāo qián) — (adjective) ahead of one's time, advanced, forward-looking; (verb) to surpass one's predecessors, to outdo

Definition

超前 means 'ahead of its time' — ideas, technology, or designs more advanced than current norms. Different from 提前 (earlier in time/schedule) and 先进 (advanced in a technical/practical sense used to praise methods or people).

adjective
ahead of one's timeadvancedforward-looking
verb
to surpass one's predecessorsto outdo

Examples

  • 超前，。
    Zhè zhǒng shè jì lǐ niàn fēi cháng chāo qián, shí nián hòu yě bú huì guò shí.
    This design philosophy is very ahead of its time; it won't be outdated even ten years later.
  • 超前。
    Tā zài kē yán lǐng yù chāo qián le suǒ yǒu qián bèi.
    He surpassed all his predecessors in the field of scientific research.
  • 超前。
    Guò dù yī lài chāo qián xiāo fèi huì dǎo zhì cái wù wēi jī.
    Over-reliance on ahead-of-time consumption can lead to a financial crisis.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

超chāoexceed
前qiánahead

超前 combines 超, to exceed, with 前, forward or ahead, giving the sense of being ahead of the current time.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
走走zǒurun
Sound part声符shēngfú
召
召zhào超chāo
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

超 pairs 走, meaning “run,” with 召, which gives the sound.

Open 超 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

In the older form of 前, 止 (foot) and 舟 (boat) showed a foot on a boat moving forward; in the current 前 those parts are shortened.

Open 前 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Time (Abstract)

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