kozutsumi o okuru mae ni, atena o mou ichido kakuninshimashita.

direct object particle

Breakdown of kozutsumi o okuru mae ni, atena o mou ichido kakuninshimashita.

• に: time particle
• 前まえ: before
• 確認かくにんする: to check

Questions & Answers about kozutsumi o okuru mae ni, atena o mou ichido kakuninshimashita.

Why is 送る in dictionary form before 前に, even though the sentence ends in the past tense?

When 前に follows a verb, Japanese normally uses the verb’s dictionary form:

• Vる + 前に = before doing V

So:

• 送る前に = before sending

The past meaning for the whole sentence comes from the main verb 確認しました.
So the sentence means that the checking happened in the past, at a time before the sending.

A helpful comparison:

• 送る前に = before sending
• 送った後で = after sending

So the form before 前に is about the time relationship, not the final tense of the whole sentence.

What exactly does 前に mean here?

Here, 前に means before.

In this sentence, it connects an action to another action:

• 小包を送る前に = before sending the package

This is a very common pattern:

• 食べる前に = before eating
• 寝る前に = before sleeping
• 出かける前に = before going out

You can also use 前に after a noun:

• 食事の前に = before the meal
• 出発の前に = before departure

So in your sentence, 前に marks the time when the main action happened.

Why are there two を particles in one sentence?