Breakdown of wǒmen wǎnshang shuìjiào yǐqián bú kàn diànyǐng.
不bù
not
我们wǒmen
we
看kàn
to watch
电影diànyǐng
movie
Questions & Answers about wǒmen wǎnshang shuìjiào yǐqián bú kàn diànyǐng.
Why is the word order 我们 晚上 睡觉 以前 不 看 电影?
Chinese usually puts time expressions before the main verb.
So the structure here is:
- 我们 = we
- 晚上 = at night / in the evening
- 睡觉以前 = before sleeping
- 不看电影 = do not watch movies
A very rough pattern is:
subject + time + another time-related phrase + negation + verb + object
So 晚上 comes before 不看电影, because it sets the time for the whole action.
What exactly does 以前 mean here?
In this sentence, 以前 means before.
It comes after a word or phrase and makes it into a time reference:
- 睡觉以前 = before sleeping / before going to bed
So here 以前 works a bit like a postposition, because it comes after the thing it relates to.
Compare:
- 吃饭以前 = before eating
- 上课以前 = before class
- 睡觉以前 = before sleeping
Can I say 睡觉前 instead of 睡觉以前?