原 来 yuán lái original / former / originally / formerly / at first / so, actually, as it turns out 过 去 guò qù (in the) past / former / previous / to go over / to pass by 曾 经 céng jīng once / already / former / previously / ever / (past tense marker used before verb or clause) 原 先 yuán xiān originally / original / former 原 有 yuán yǒu original / former 前 者 qián zhě the former 前 任 qián rèn predecessor / ex- / former / ex (spouse etc) 前 front / forward / ahead / first / top (followed by a number) / future / ago / before / BC (e.g. 前293年) / former / formerly 原 former / original / primary / raw / level / cause / source 网 通 wǎng tōng China Netcom (CNC), former telecommunication service provider in PRC 往 事 wǎng shì past events / former happenings 昔 日 xī rì former days / in the past 复 发 fù fā to recur (of a disease) / to reappear / to relapse (into a former bad state) 武 术 wǔ shù military skill or technique (in former times) / all kinds of martial art sports (some claiming spiritual development) / self-defense / tradition of choreographed fights from opera and film (recent usage) / also called kungfu 功夫 / CL:種|种[zhong3] 制 服 zhì fú to subdue / to check / to bring under control / (in former times) what one is allowed to wear depending on social status / uniform (army, party, school etc) / livery (for company employees) / CL:套[tao4] 中 场 zhōng chǎng middle period of a tripartite provincial exam (in former times) / midfield / mid-court (in sports) / half-time / intermission half-way through a performance 往 日 wǎng rì former days / the past 传 承 chuán chéng to pass on (to future generations) / passed on (from former times) / a continued tradition / an inheritance 故 宫 gù gōng former imperial palace 往 年 wǎng nián in former years / in previous years 连 战 Lián Zhàn Lien Chan (1936-), Taiwanese politician, former vice-president and chairman of Guomintang 汉 城 Hàn chéng Hanseong, former name of Seoul (capital of South Korea), replaced in 2005 with 首爾|首尔[Shou3 er3] 复 原 fù yuán to restore (sth) to (its) former condition / to recover from illness / recovery 群 雄 qún xióng outstanding heroes / warlords vying for supremacy (in former times) / stars (of sports or pop music) 故 居 gù jū former residence 拉 丁 lā dīng Latin / (in former times) to press-gang / to kidnap and force people into service 前 苏 联 qián Sū lián former Soviet Union 龙 飞 lóng fēi to promote (to official position in former times) 舒 马 赫 Shū mǎ hè Michael Schumacher (1969-), former German racing driver 旧 址 jiù zhǐ former site / old location 前 总 统 qián zǒng tǒng former president 三 军 sān jūn (in former times) upper, middle and lower army / army of right, center and left / (in modern times) the three armed services: Army, Navy and Air Force 麦 迪 Mài dí Tracy McGrady (1979-), former NBA player 西 汉 Xī Hàn Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-8 AD), also called 前漢|前汉[Qian2 Han4], Former Han Dynasty 旧 时 jiù shí in former times / the olden days 前 夫 qián fū former husband 铜 钱 tóng qián copper coin (round with a square hole in the middle, used in former times in China) 褪 去 tuì qù to take off (one's clothes) / (fig.) to shed (one's former image etc) / (of a fad or the after-effects of a disaster etc) to subside / also pr. [tun4 qu4] 旧 事 jiù shì old affair / former matter 上 辈 子 shàng bèi zi one's ancestors / past generations / a former incarnation 旧 日 jiù rì former times / olden days 午 时 wǔ shí 11 am-1 pm (in the system of two-hour subdivisions used in former times) 王 治 郅 Wáng Zhì zhì Wang Zhizhi (1977-), former Chinese basketball player 保 驾 bǎo jià (in former times) to escort the emperor (or other important personage) / (nowadays) to escort sb (usually jocular) 国 家 环 保 总 局 guó jiā huán bǎo zǒng jú (PRC) State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA), former incarnation (until 2008) of 環境保護部|环境保护部[Huan2 jing4 Bao3 hu4 bu4] 银 票 yín piào (in former times) banknote with a value in silver 李 肇 星 Lǐ Zhào xīng Li Zhaoxing (1940-), former PRC foreign minister 子 时 zǐ shí 11 pm-1 am (in the system of two-hour subdivisions used in former times) 农 妇 nóng fù peasant woman (in former times) / female farm worker 汉 书 Hàn shū History of the Former Han Dynasty, second of the 24 dynastic histories 二十四史[Er4 shi2 si4 Shi3], composed by Ban Gu 班固[Ban1 Gu4] in 82 during Eastern Han (later Han), 100 scrolls 昔 年 xī nián former years / previous years 赛 马 会 Sài mǎ huì the Jockey Club, Hong Kong philanthropic organization (and former gentleman's club) 书 馆 shū guǎn teashop with performance by 評書|评书 / story tellers / (attached to name of publishing houses) / (in former times) private school / library (of classic texts) 往 届 wǎng jiè former sessions / former years 私 塾 sī shú private school (in former times) 前 嫌 qián xián former hatred / bygone enmity 西 贡 Xī gòng Saigon, capital of former South Vietnam / Sai Kung town in New Territories, Hong Kong 故 地 gù dì once familiar places / former haunts 叙 旧 xù jiù to reminisce / to talk about former times 胡 志 明 Hú Zhì míng Ho Chi Minh (1890-1969), former Vietnamese leader / see also 胡志明市[Hu2 Zhi4 ming2 Shi4] 旧 约 jiù yuē former agreement / former contract 萨 摩 Sà mó Satsuma, the name of a former feudal domain in Japan, and of a former province, a battleship, a district, a peninsula etc 王 莽 Wáng Mǎng Wang Mang (45 BC-23 AD), usurped power and reigned 9-23 between the former and later Han 先 王 xiān wáng former sovereigns 吴 官 正 Wú Guān zhèng Wu Guanzheng (1938-), former CCP Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection 王 法 wáng fǎ the law / the law of the land / the law of a state (in former times) / criterion 前 总 理 qián zǒng lǐ former prime minister 旧 居 jiù jū old residence / former home 燕 国 Yān guó Yan, a vassal state of Zhou in modern Hebei and Liaoning / north Hebei / the four Yan kingdoms of the Sixteen Kingdoms, namely: Former Yan 前燕[Qian2 Yan1] (337-370), Later Yan 後燕|后燕[Hou4 Yan1] (384-409), Southern Yan 南燕[Nan2 Yan1] (398-410), Northern Yan 北燕[Bei3 Yan1] (409-436) 围 场 wéi chǎng enclosure / pig pen / hunting ground exclusively kept for emperor or nobility (in former times) 汪 道 涵 Wāng Dào hán Wang Daohan (1915-2005), former president of the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits 旧 部 jiù bù one's former subordinates 雷 龙 léi lóng apatosaurus / former name: brontosaurus 蛮 夷 mán yí common term for non-Han peoples in former times, not exclusively derogatory / barbarian 再 拜 zài bài to bow again / to bow twice (gesture of respect in former times) / (in letters, an expression of respect) 头 面 tóu miàn head ornament (in former times) / (literary) head / face / looks 银 钱 yín qián silver money (in former times) 余 孽 yú niè remaining evil element / surviving members (of an evil former regime) / dregs (of a colonial administration) 旧 貌 jiù mào old look / former appearance 郎 平 Láng Píng Jenny Lang Ping (1960-), Chinese former volleyball player and coach 遗 诏 yí zhào posthumous edict (of former emperor) 旧 地 jiù dì once familiar places / former haunts 巡 捕 xún bǔ to patrol / policeman (in China's former foreign concessions) 原 苏 联 yuán Sū lián former Soviet Union 结 发 jié fà (in former times) to bind one's hair on coming of age 旧 病 jiù bìng old illness / former affliction 李 瑞 环 Lǐ Ruì huán Li Ruihuan (1934-), former Chinese politician 旧 识 jiù shí former acquaintance / old friend 故 都 gù dū former capital / ancient capital 洋 货 yáng huò Western goods / imported goods (in former times) 前 首 相 qián shǒu xiàng former prime minister 旧 制 jiù zhì old system / weights and measures of former times 痛 改 前 非 tòng gǎi qián fēi completely correcting one's former misdeeds (idiom) / to repent past mistakes and turn over a new leaf / a reformed character 旧 物 jiù wù old property (esp. inherited from former generation) / former territory 遗 民 yí mín (lit.) leftover men / (fig.) loyalist adherents of a former dynasty / surviving members of an ethnic group 穆 巴 拉 克 Mù bā lā kè Hosni Mubarak (1928-2020), former Egyptian President and military commander 租 税 zū shuì taxation / in former times, esp. land tax 苻 坚 Fú Jiān Fu Jian (338-385), emperor of Former Qin 前秦[Qian2 Qin2], reigning from 357-385 董 仲 舒 Dǒng Zhòng shū Dong Zhongshu (179-104 BC), philosopher influential in establishing Confucianism as the established system of values of former Han dynasty 旧 时 代 jiù shí dài former times / the olden days
qián