kaigi no mae ni juppun yasumimashita.

possessive case particle

Breakdown of kaigi no mae ni juppun yasumimashita.

• に: time particle
• 休やすむ: to rest
• 会議かいぎ: meeting

Questions & Answers about kaigi no mae ni juppun yasumimashita.

Why is there a の between 会議 and 前?

の links the noun 会議 (meeting) to 前 (before/front).

So:

• 会議 = meeting
• 前 = before
• 会議の前 = before the meeting

You can think of Noun + の + 前 as a very common pattern meaning before N.

Examples:

• 食事の前 = before the meal
• 寝る前 = before sleeping
• 授業の前 = before class

Here, 会議の前 is a time expression.

Why is there a に after 前?

In this sentence, に marks the time point when the action happened.

• 会議の前に = before the meeting
• 休みました = rested

So the sentence says that the resting happened before the meeting.

With words like 前 and 後, に is very common when you are marking when something happens:

• 食事の前に手を洗います。 = I wash my hands before the meal.
• 授業の後に図書館へ行きます。 = I go to the library after class.

In casual speech, に may sometimes be omitted, but in standard textbook Japanese, keeping it is best.