前月(ぜんげつ)

Composed of 前(ぜん) (previous, before) + 月(げつ) (month). A formal time reference word common in business, statistics, and official documents.

Common collocations

• 前月(ぜんげつ)比(ひ): month-over-month comparison
• 前月(ぜんげつ)の実績(じっせき): the previous month's results
• 前月(ぜんげつ)末(まつ): the end of the previous month
• 前月(ぜんげつ)より: compared to the previous month

Similar words

• 先月(せんげつ): last month — used relative to the present moment, common in everyday speech
• 翌月(よくげつ): the following month — the opposite direction in time

Usage

前月(ぜんげつ) is relative to a referenced point in time (often in reports or narratives), while 先月(せんげつ) means 'last month' relative to now. In a business report about March, 前月(ぜんげつ) refers to February, regardless of when the report is read.