come before

He debated heating up the pot first before his friends came.

他考虑朋友们到来之前先把火锅烧热。

A general comes before a colonel.

将官比校官高。

It comes of the Eupatrid System in the Ear before Qin Dynasty, that is the officials are nominated by the King, and the official positions are descendent.

它起源于先秦时卿制，即官员由王任命，官职代相袭。

It is the reason why the wildcatter, the independent oilman whose test drillings might come up dry 20 times before gushing in the end, is an enduring Texas symbol.

这是为什么那些投机，那些个体油油喷发前可能要试钻探多达二十次原因，这也是德州一直以来标志。