kaigi ga hajimaru mae ni, sumaho o muon ni shite kudasai.

direct object particle

Breakdown of kaigi ga hajimaru mae ni, sumaho o muon ni shite kudasai.

• が: subject particle
• に: time particle
• 始はじまる: to start

Questions & Answers about kaigi ga hajimaru mae ni, sumaho o muon ni shite kudasai.

Why is が used after 会議 instead of は?

が marks 会議 as the thing that begins.

• 会議が始まる = the meeting begins
• 会議は始まる would sound more like as for the meeting, it begins and would usually be used when contrasting it with something else or when the meeting is already the topic.

In this sentence, 会議が始まる前に is a straightforward clause meaning before the meeting begins, so が is the most natural choice.

Why is 始まる in dictionary form before 前に?

When a verb comes before 前に, it usually stays in the plain/dictionary form if the action is still in the future relative to the main action.

So:

• 会議が始まる前に = before the meeting begins

This is the normal pattern:

• V-plain + 前に = before doing V / before V happens

Examples:

• 寝る前に = before going to bed
• 食べる前に = before eating

What exactly does 前に mean here?

前 means before or in front, depending on context. Here it means before, and に marks the point in time.

So:

• 会議が始まる前に = before the meeting begins

It tells you the requested action should happen earlier than the meeting’s start.