前
まえ · mae · JLPT N5 · noun
in front
mae sounds like my: my eyes face what is before me
Say mae as ma-eh, close to my. What is before you is whatever sits in front of your face. The same word covers time: before an event is the stretch that lies ahead of it in line, as in 三年前, three years before.
前 — top 丷 + 一 + 月 (moon) + 刂 (knife)
Originally written 歬, depicting a foot 止 above a boat 舟, meaning to advance or go forward. Over time the form evolved and the knife radical 刂 was added, while 止 and 舟 fused into the modern shape. The core meaning 'front, before, ahead' has stayed consistent.