| 前 | ぜん | last (i.e. immediately preceding); previous; ex-; former | n5 |
| お前 | おまえ | you; before (a god, nobleman, etc.); in front of | n2 |
| 以前 | いぜん | before; prior to; ago; the past | n4 |
| 前後 | ぜんご | front and rear; front and back; before and behind; back and forth | n3 |
| 名前 | なまえ | name; given name; first name | n5 |
| 手前 | てまえ | before oneself; in front of one; nearby; a bit before reaching (a location) | n2 |
| 午前 | ごぜん | morning; a.m. | n5 |
| 眼前 | がんぜん | before one's eyes | |
| 前日 | ぜんじつ | previous day; day before; eve; prior day | |
| 事前 | じぜん | prior; beforehand; in advance; before the fact | n2 |
| 門前 | もんぜん | before the gate; in front of the gate | |
| 当り前 | あたりまえ | natural; reasonable; obvious; usual | n4 |
| 前途 | ぜんと | future; prospects; outlook; journey ahead | |
| 前方 | ぜんぽう | ahead; forward; (in) front; having a square front | n3 |
| 前者 | ぜんしゃ | the former; the first | n2 |
| 目前 | もくぜん | before one's very eyes; under one's nose; imminence; close at hand | n2 |
| 前夜 | ぜんや | last night; the previous night; night before (Christmas, etc.); eve (of festival, major event, etc.) | |
| 御前 | おまえ | you; before (a god, nobleman, etc.); in front of | n2 |
| 生前 | せいぜん | while alive; during one's lifetime | n1 |
| 前提 | ぜんてい | condition; assumption; prerequisite; hypothesis | n2 |
| 前進 | ぜんしん | advance; moving forward; progress | n2 |
| 直前 | ちょくぜん | just before; just prior to; right in front of; just in front of | n3 |
| 前述 | ぜんじゅつ | aforementioned; above-mentioned | |
| 前年 | ぜんねん | the preceding year; the previous year; last year | |
| 前半 | ぜんはん | first half | n2 |
| 前面 | ぜんめん | front part; frontage; facade; initial pledge (e.g. election) | n1 |
| 前髪 | まえがみ | forelock; bangs | |
| 腕前 | うでまえ | ability; skill; facility | n1 |
| 面前 | めんぜん | (in the) presence (of); in front (of); before (someone) | |
| 越前 | えちぜん | Echizen (former province located in parts of present-day Fukui and Gifu prefectures) | |
| 駅前 | えきまえ | in front of a station | n4 |
| 前身 | ぜんしん | antecedents; ancestor; previous position; previous existence | n2 |
| 人前 | にんまえ | portion of food | n2 |
| 前々 | まえまえ | a long time ago; long before now | n1 |
| 戦前 | せんぜん | pre-war days; before the war | n1 |
| 前兆 | ぜんちょう | omen; portent; sign; presage | |
| 前記 | ぜんき | aforesaid; above-mentioned; said; above | |
| 持前 | もちまえ | natural; inborn; innate; inherent | n1 |
| 最前 | さいぜん | frontmost; a short time ago; a little while ago; just now | n2 |
| 前もって | まえもって | in advance; beforehand; previously; ahead of time | n2 |
| 前歯 | まえば | front tooth; foretooth; incisor | |
| 前回 | ぜんかい | previous time; last time; previous installment; previous instalment | n3 |
| 前例 | ぜんれい | precedent | n1 |
| 錠前 | じょうまえ | lock | |
| 備前 | びぜん | Bizen (former province located in the southeast of present-day Okayama Prefecture) | |
| 紀元前 | きげんぜん | pre-era; BC; BCE | n1 |
| 神前 | しんぜん | before god; before an altar | |
| 持ち前 | もちまえ | natural; inborn; innate; inherent | n1 |
| 気前 | きまえ | generosity | |
| 前庭 | ぜんてい | front garden; front yard; vestibule (of the ear) | n2 |
| あたり前 | あたりまえ | natural; reasonable; obvious; usual | n4 |
| 前代未聞 | ぜんだいみもん | unheard-of; unprecedented; unparalleled in history (unparallelled); record-breaking | |
| 前世 | ぜんせ | one's previous life; previous existence | |
| 前垂 | まえだれ | apron | |
| 庭前 | ていぜん | garden | |
| 前線 | ぜんせん | (weather) front; front line; the front; battlefront | |
| 肥前 | ひぜん | Hizen (former province located in present-day Saga and Nagasaki prefectures, excluding Tsushima and Oki Islands) | |
| 前足 | まえあし | forefoot; forefeet; foreleg; forelimb | |
| 前期 | ぜんき | first term; first half-year; preceding period; early period | |
| 従前 | じゅうぜん | previous; former | |
| 筑前 | ちくぜん | Chikuzen (former province located in the west of present-day Fukuoka Prefecture) | |
| 前衛 | ぜんえい | advance guard; vanguard; avant-garde; forward (player) | n1 |
| 前置き | まえおき | preface; introduction; preamble | n1 |
| 前代 | ぜんだい | previous generation; former ages | |
| 前触れ | まえぶれ | advance warning; previous notice; prior announcement; herald | |
| 前編 | ぜんぺん | first part (of a book, film, etc.); first volume; prequel | |
| 前橋 | まえばし | Maebashi (city in Gunma) | |
| 寸前 | すんぜん | just before; on the verge of; on the brink of; just in front of | n1 |
| 仏前 | ぶつぜん | (before a) Buddhist altar; before the Buddha; offering placed on a Buddhist altar; incense money | |
| 最前線 | さいぜんせん | front line; forefront | |
| 当たり前 | あたりまえ | natural; reasonable; obvious; usual | n4 |
| 前のめり | まえのめり | pitching forward (as if to fall); proactive; forward-looking; positive | |
| 空前 | くうぜん | unprecedented; record-breaking | |
| 出前 | でまえ | home delivery (of food); outside catering | |
| 江戸前 | えどまえ | Tokyo style | |
| 前科 | ぜんか | previous conviction; criminal record; previous offense; previous offence | |
| 朝飯前 | あさめしまえ | very easy; piece of cake; child's play; easy as pie | |
| 昼前 | ひるまえ | morning; forenoon; just before noon | |
| 前列 | ぜんれつ | front row | |
| 弘前 | ひろさき | Hirosaki (city in Aomori) | |
| 男前 | おとこまえ | handsome man; man's looks; good looks; manliness | |
| 前屈み | まえかがみ | slouch | |
| 丹前 | たんぜん | large padded kimono | |
| 前借 | ぜんしゃく | getting an advance; loan | |
| 一人前 | いちにんまえ | one portion; one serving; one person; adult | n1 |
| 前人 | ぜんじん | predecessor; people of former times | |
| 建前 | たてまえ | face; official stance; public position or attitude (as opposed to private thoughts); ceremony for the erection of the framework of a house | n1 |
| お名前 | おなまえ | name | |
| 前向き | まえむき | front-facing; forward-looking; positive; constructive | n2 |
| 前ぶれ | まえぶれ | advance warning; previous notice; prior announcement; herald | |
| 前栽 | せんざい | garden; trees and flowers in a garden | n3 |
| 前額 | ぜんがく | forehead | n2 |
| 前駆 | ぜんく | outrider (person riding horseback in the lead position of a cavalcade); outriding; harbinger; herald | |
| 前掲 | ぜんけい | above-mentioned; given above; previously shown | |
| 前景 | ぜんけい | foreground | |
| 前略 | ぜんりゃく | dispensing with the preliminaries ...; omitting the previous part | n1 |
| 前項 | ぜんこう | preceding clause; previous paragraph; antecedent (of a ratio) | |
| 分け前 | わけまえ | share; portion; quota; cut | |
| 豊前 | ぶぜん | Buzen (former province located in the east of present-day Fukuoka and the north of Ōita prefectures) | |
| 手前勝手 | てまえがって | self-centered; self-centred; selfish | |