aftermath

noun af·ter·math \ -ˌmath \

Updated on: 15 May 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

In the aftermath of the shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School, the Broward school district has tried to keep information from the public and put out untrue and misleading statements, frustrating parents who say this is the time for transparency.

— david fleshler, Sun-Sentinel.com, "School district shuts down information after Stoneman Douglas shooting," 12 May 2018
Nuaymi, a lecturer at the University of Mosul, said the marginalization of the Sunnis can be traced back to U.S. policy in the aftermath of the war that toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003.

— Washington Post, "Iraq’s Sunnis wary but hopeful about upcoming election," 12 May 2018
In the aftermath of the April 2015 troubles in Baltimore, there had been a lot of talk about addressing poverty, high unemployment, blight and the lack of decent, affordable housing.

— dan rodricks, baltimoresun.com, "Kevin Kamenetz, the pragmatic progressive," 11 May 2018
In the aftermath of Standing Rock, Indigenous activists have put their efforts toward supporting women candidates at all levels of government.

— ellen mcgirt, Fortune, "raceAhead: How Black Women Survive Your Talent Pipeline, Mascots are Biased and Five Breaking News Haikus," 11 May 2018
However, thanks to solid defense, opportunistic offense and poise in the aftermath of a lengthy lightning delay, the Lightning prevailed.

— brent kennedy, Howard County Times, "Long Reach softball edges Atholton in opening round of 3A East region playoffs," 11 May 2018
Finger: Not in the aftermath of Justify’s win in the Kentucky Derby, not in the leadup to it, and not at any point in at least the last 40 years.

— jim lefko, San Antonio Express-News, "Sports writers discuss: Did the Saints jump the gun on UTSA's Davenport?," 11 May 2018
The department has seen three commissioners since 2015 in the aftermath of the death of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old who was killed after being transported by police.

— christal hayes, USA TODAY, "Baltimore's new police commissioner charged with tax offenses," 10 May 2018
And in his second session as speaker, Corcoran took on the National Rifle Association, working with the governor and Senate to push through the first gun control measures in decades in the aftermath of the Parkland shootings.

— emily l. mahoney and mary ellen klas, miamiherald, "Why Richard Corcoran failed in his bid to become Florida governor | Miami Herald," 10 May 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

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