aftermath

noun af·ter·math \ -ˌmath \

Updated on: 18 Apr 2018

Definition of aftermath

1 : a second-growth crop — called also rowen

2 : consequence, result

stricken with guilt as an aftermath of the accident

3 : the period immediately following a usually ruinous event

in the aftermath of the war

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Examples of aftermath in a Sentence

the surgery was successful, but she now had to deal with its aftermath: a huge bill

Recent Examples of aftermath from the Web

The Justice Department appointed Robert Mueller as special counsel to probe Russian interference in the 2016 election - and possible collusion with the Trump campaign - in the aftermath of Comey’s ouster.

— john wagner, BostonGlobe.com, "GOP campaign seeks to brand ex-FBI director Comey a liar as he touts book critical of Trump," 14 Apr. 2018
Videos taken in the aftermath of the attack show large yellow canisters that experts have said appear to be chlorine tanks, of the kind often used for civilian purposes.

— david e. sanger and ben hubbard, New York Times, "A Hard Lesson in Syria: Assad Can Still Gas His Own People," 14 Apr. 2018
Valverde was heavily criticised in the aftermath of the game as the inquest into Barça's elimination began.

— SI.com, "VIDEO: Prophetic Iniesta Warns Barcelona Teammates of Roma Fightback Ahead of Shock UCL Exit," 13 Apr. 2018
By this point, many of the medical workers and activists who were on hand in the aftermath of the attack have dispersed.

— margaret hartmann, Daily Intelligencer, "What Really Happened in the Douma Chemical Attack?," 12 Apr. 2018
Most significantly, in the aftermath of the Shayrat strike, Russia publicly increased the level of integration between its air defenses in Syria and those of the regime.

— justin bronk, Time, "A Few Cruise Missiles Won’t Be Enough to Halt Assad’s Brutality," 12 Apr. 2018
The Justice Department appointed Robert Mueller as special counsel to probe Russian interference in the 2016 election - and possible collusion with the Trump campaign - in the aftermath of Comey's ouster.

— john wagner, chicagotribune.com, "GOP campaign seeks to brand ex-FBI director Comey a liar as he touts book critical of Trump," 12 Apr. 2018
With tens of thousands of Puerto Ricans fleeing to Central Florida in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, experts agree that the idea of an organization that can unify Puerto Ricans could be powerful to address the island’s problems from the mainland.

— bianca padró ocasio, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Puerto Rico's governor pledged to unite the island's displaced voters. Will they follow him?," 12 Apr. 2018
In the aftermath of the attack, many people responded to a call for blood donations from the city's hospital.

— charlotte chelsom-pill, USA TODAY, "German city of Münster searches for answers, days after deadly van attack," 10 Apr. 2018

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

Breaking Down aftermath

Aftermath dates to the late 1400s and was originally an agricultural term. Its two parts are transparent—but only if you're familiar with an ancient word math that is now used only in British dialectal English and that means "a mowing of a grass or hay crop" and also refers to the crop that is gathered. The original aftermath came, of course, after the math: it was historically the crop of (usually) grass cut, grazed, or plowed under after the first crop of the season from the same soil. It wasn't until the mid-late 1600s that aftermath developed its other meanings, both of which are now far more common than the first.

Origin and Etymology of aftermath

after- + math "mowing," going back to Middle English *math, going back to a short-vowel variant (perhaps of Germanic date) of Old English mǣþ, going back to Germanic *mēþa- (whence Old Saxon mād- —in māddag "mowing day"—, Old High German āmād "aftermath"), derivative with the nominal suffix *-to- from the base of *mēan- "to ²mow"

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year