after

adverb

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af·ter | \ ˈaf-tər

Definition of after

(Entry 1 of 7)

: following in time or place : afterward, behind, later we arrived shortly after returned 20 years after

after

preposition

Definition of after (Entry 2 of 7)

1a : behind in place people lined up one after another

b(1) : subsequent to in time or order 20 minutes after 6

(2) : subsequent to and in view of after all our advice

2 —used to indicate the object of a stated or implied action go after goldwas asking after you

3 : so as to resemble: such as

a : in accordance with He's a man after my own heart.

b : with the name of or a name derived from that of named after his father

c : in the characteristic manner of : in imitation of writing after the manner of Hemingway

— see also take after

after

conjunction

Definition of after (Entry 3 of 7)

: subsequently to the time when We will come after we make plans.

after

adjective

Definition of after (Entry 4 of 7)

1 : later in time in after years

2 [Middle English, probably from afte aft entry 1 + -er -er entry 1] : located toward the rear and especially toward the stern of a ship or tail of an aircraft an after cabin

after

auxiliary verb

af·ter | \ ˈäf-tər

Definition of after (Entry 5 of 7)

chiefly Irish

—used with a present participle to indicate action completed and especially just completed the poor old man is after dying on me— J. M. Synge

after

noun

Definition of after (Entry 6 of 7)

: afternoon

after-

prefix

Definition of after- (Entry 7 of 7)

1a —used as the first part of a compound to indicate an event or entity that follows or results from the thing denoted by the second part of the compound afterbirthafterlifeafternoon

b —used as the first part of a compound to indicate an event or entity of the same nature as the thing denoted by the second part of the compound but which follows that event or entity and is less intense or significant afterglowaftershockafterthought

2 —the rear or lower part afterdeck

Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about after

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Synonyms & Antonyms for after

Synonyms: Adverb

Synonyms: Preposition

Synonyms: Adjective

Antonyms: Adverb

Antonyms: Preposition

afore
[chiefly dialect],
ahead of,
before,
ere,
of,
previous to,
prior to,
to

Antonyms: Adjective

Examples of after in a Sentence

Adverb Don't tell them until after. I expected her then, but she arrived the week after. He ate lunch and left just after. Preposition We arrived shortly after six o'clock. He returned after 20 years. before, during, and after the war He left just after nightfall. He finished the exam after me. Call me after your arrival. She was going to arrive tomorrow but I'm now expecting her the day after tomorrow instead. He left after an hour. How can you say that after what happened last night? It's the highest mountain after Mount Everest. Conjunction He returned after 20 years had passed. Don't tell them until after they've had dinner. He left just after the show ended. Call me after you arrive. He finished the exam after I did. It happened not long after he graduated from college. Adjective had heard that the after section of an aircraft is safer in the event of a crash in after years the government set up a special fund for disabled veterans of the war

Recent Examples on the Web: Adverb Soon after, all but one lineage of Neanderthals disappeared. — Ann Gibbons, Science | AAAS, "DNA from cave dirt tells tale of how some Neanderthals disappeared," 15 Apr. 2021 Those realities were just as true before the pandemic as after. — Benjamin Zycher, National Review, "Where We are Headed: Making the U.S. Poorer and OPEC+ Richer," 15 Apr. 2021 Each day after, a new day’s worth of appointments — offered Monday through Friday — will be made available. — Matthew Glowicki, The Courier-Journal, "'Hopefully things will turn around.' In-person unemployment help resumes across Kentucky," 15 Apr. 2021 Health officials caution against confusing the normal flu-like symptoms that occur a day or two after many COVID-19 vaccination with the clot concern. — BostonGlobe.com, "CDC advisers weigh next steps for Johnson & Johnson shot amid clot mystery," 14 Apr. 2021 Health officials caution against confusing the normal flu-like symptoms that occur a day or two after many COVID-19 vaccination with the clot concern. — Mike Stobbe, Fortune, "U.S. officials say they need more time to weigh J&J vaccine risks," 14 Apr. 2021 Republicans in the Arkansas House and Senate overrode that veto shortly after, saying the bill was necessary to protect children. — cleveland, "Ohio legislature to see bills critics say are anti-transgender," 13 Apr. 2021 Shortly after, officers located the suspect in a silver Honda Accord that matched a description from witnesses, PennLive.com reported. — Fox News, "Pennsylvania man arrested in deadly road rage stabbing," 13 Apr. 2021 And, shortly after, McCluskey was shot to death by Melvin Rowland, who later died by suicide. — Courtney Tanner, The Salt Lake Tribune, "Former police chief and officer who showed explicit photos of Lauren McCluskey seek $10M from University of Utah," 13 Apr. 2021 Recent Examples on the Web: Preposition Welwyn Garden City was the second garden city to be built in Britain, after Letchworth, a few miles to the north in Hertfordshire. — The Economist, "Welwyn Garden City The fight to preserve a pioneering planned town," 17 Apr. 2021 The second game of the doubleheader will begin approximately one hour after the conclusion of the first game. — Matt Jones, Arkansas Online, "Hogs, Aggies rained out, schedule Saturday doubleheader," 17 Apr. 2021 Per the York Museums Trust’s History of York, Romans arrived in the city of York—about 40 miles southwest of Scarborough—around 71 A.D., more than 25 years after establishing a province in southern Britain. — Livia Gershon, Smithsonian Magazine, "Archaeologists Unearth Sprawling Roman Ruins Unlike Any Found in the U.K.," 16 Apr. 2021 Utah made seven 3-pointers in the third quarter after making six total in the first half. ... — John Coon, ajc, "Minus injured Mitchell, Jazz rally to beat Pacers 119-111," 16 Apr. 2021 The consent decrees included those with the police in Ferguson, Missouri, after the killing of Michael Brown and in Baltimore following the police custody death of 25-year-old Freddie Gray. — BostonGlobe.com, "AG Garland rescinds Trump-era curtailing of consent decrees used in investigations of police departments," 16 Apr. 2021 When Bucky catches him at the Sokovian memorial, Zemo seems almost eager to be executed and join his wife and kids in whatever comes after this life. — Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, "‘The Falcon and the Winter Soldier’ Recap: American Skin," 16 Apr. 2021 The two suspects were arrested last month in Indonesia's second-biggest city Surabaya after police were notified by U.S. authorities. — CBS News, "Indonesian arrests hackers over $60 million U.S. COVID-19 scam," 16 Apr. 2021 Jo Hemmings said that as a nation there was a yearning for the royal family to resolve its differences — especially after the death of William and Harry's mother, Princess Diana. — NBC News, "All eyes on Prince Harry, and royal rift, after his return to U.K. for Prince Philip's funeral," 16 Apr. 2021 Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective Under the 50/30/20 budget, all your must-have expenses — including housing, utilities, transportation, insurance and minimum loan payments — would be 50% or less of your after-tax income (your gross income minus income and payroll taxes). — Liz Weston, oregonlive, "Liz Weston: Shoot for zero credit card debt to reach personal financial health," 27 Feb. 2021 Half of your after-tax income goes toward needs (housing, food, utilities), 30% to wants and 20% is for saving/paying down debts. — Star Tribune, "Post-pandemic, how to avoid a return to credit card debt," 23 Jan. 2021 Exotic was not available to comment on the numerous allegations made against him during the after show. — Rosy Cordero, EW.com, "Tiger King after show 'The Tiger King and I' puts Joe Exotic under the microscope," 12 Apr. 2020 Iowa trailed 18-14 after one quarter but made 11 of 13 shots – missing its only two 3-point attempts – to outscore Purdue 25-15 in the second quarter for a 39-33 halftime lead. — Staff Reports, Indianapolis Star, "State college basketball: IU women bounce back with win," 9 Feb. 2020 The point-after attempt failed, leaving Heights up 6-0 with 3:38 left in the first quarter. — Jack Marrion, Houston Chronicle, "Defense, late TDs send Memorial to area playoffs," 18 Nov. 2019 Her colorist, Jack Martin, revealed this and more in his latest Instagram post, which shows a before-and-after look at Osbourne's transformation. — Kaleigh Fasanella, Allure, "Sharon Osbourne Just Debuted a White Hair Makeover," 18 Feb. 2020 Matt Ruffolo's point-after attempt gave the Wildcats a 7-6 lead with 6:17 left in the first quarter. — Jon Hale, The Courier-Journal, "Record-setting Lynn Bowden performance leads Kentucky to blowout of Louisville," 30 Nov. 2019 Iowa congresswoman Cindy Axne endorsed Joe Biden for president, giving the former vice president a sought-after vote of confidence with just nine days until the Feb. 3 first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses. — Emily Larsen, Washington Examiner, "Biden snags coveted endorsement from swing-district Iowa congresswoman Cindy Axne," 25 Jan. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun An important word to note in the day-after disappointment. — BostonGlobe.com, "Despite its stinging setback in NCAA championship, Northeastern women’s hockey team proved it was elite," 21 Mar. 2021 As the film alludes, life never returned to normal for Wynne, who battled depression and the psychological after-effects of his incarceration. — Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY, "Bendict Cumberbatch's real-life, unlikely spy: 5 things to know about 'The Courier' Greville Wynne," 20 Mar. 2021 Here, nine women from across Canada share their experiences, from making an appointment to dealing with the after-effects. — Katherine Singh, refinery29.com, "9 Canadian Women On What It’s Like To Get The COVID Vaccine," 19 Mar. 2021 The departure was facilitated because he been assessed a technical after with 11:38 left on a tie up with an Oregon player earlier, with the technical also counting as a personal foul. — Michelle Gardner, The Arizona Republic, "Top-seeded Oregon powers past Arizona State in Pac-12 quarterfinal," 11 Mar. 2021 The Knights had the point-after kick blocked but grabbed the early lead. — Pat Stoetzer, baltimoresun.com/maryland/carroll, "Kickoff return for a touchdown gives Century football its opening statement vs. Man Valley," 5 Mar. 2021 Now, millions more are dealing with grief, unemployment, the after-effects of serious illness and the stresses of long-term isolation. — Adnan Asar, Forbes, "The Best Tech Tool For Mental Health May Be The Simplest: Broadband Internet Access," 26 Feb. 2021 Here, six women share their experiences, from making an appointment to dealing with the after-effects. — Elizabeth Gulino, refinery29.com, "6 Women On What It’s Like To Get The COVID-19 Vaccine," 7 Feb. 2021 Izochukwu’s story is emblematic of the wider reality facing hundreds of young African soccer players, who are seeing their dreams of landing contracts with European clubs dashed by the after-effects of the coronavirus pandemic. — Yomi Kazeem, Quartz Africa, "Covid-19 is robbing young African soccer talent of their big-time European ambitions," 6 Dec. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'after.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of after

Adverb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Preposition

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Conjunction

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Auxiliary verb

1778, in the meaning defined above

Noun

circa 1902, in the meaning defined above

History and Etymology for after

Adverb

Middle English after, efter, going back to Old English æfter, going back to Germanic *after- (whence Old Saxon & Old High German aftar "after, behind," Old Norse eptir, Gothic aptaro), perhaps from Indo-European *h₁epi-, *h₁opi- "on, at" + *-ter-, suffix of separation and distinctness — more at epi-

Note: The initial element has alternatively been assigned to Indo-European *h₂epo-, "(away) from" (see of entry 1); cf. Sanskrit apataram, "farther off." In a Germanic context the forms may well have interacted with each other.

Preposition

Middle English after, efter, going back to Old English æfter, identical with the adverb æfter after entry 1 when governing an object

Conjunction

Middle English, elliptically for after that, from after after entry 2 + that that entry 2

Adjective

independent use of after-

Auxiliary verb

after entry 2, copying Irish prepositional constructions tar éis, i ndiaidh, etc.

Noun

by shortening

Prefix

Middle English after, going back to Old English æfter, form in composition of adverbial æfter after entry 1