later than a particular time or event
We always brush our teeth after breakfast.
The movie starts after seven o'clock.
following or moving behind someone or something in order to catch or reach them
The puppy ran after the bouncing ball.
Police went after the thief through the market.
used to connect two statements, showing that the second happens later than the first
I'll text you after I land.
She felt better after she took some medicine.
at a later time; afterwards
First we had dinner, and ice cream came soon after.
He arrived five minutes after.
occurring or existing later than a particular event
He complained about the after effects of the vaccine.
There was an after taste of garlic in the soup.
the part of the day that starts just after 12 noon and ends before evening
We played soccer in the park yesterday afternoon.
I usually feel sleepy after lunch in the early afternoon.
✦ From Middle English after-none, literally “after noon”, first recorded in the 14th century.
at a later time; after something else has happened
We watched the fireworks and went for ice cream right afterward.
Emma finished her homework and afterward joined her friends at the park.
✦ From Old English “æfter” (after) + “-ward” (direction toward), meaning “toward a time after”. Spelling without the final “s” became standard in American English.
at a later time; after something else has taken place
We played football and went for fish and chips afterwards.
Finish your chores, and you can watch television afterwards.
✦ Formed from after + -wards, the older English adverbial ending meaning “toward a direction or time”. Retained in British English.
the period of time that follows a harmful or shocking event, when its effects are still being felt or dealt with.
In the aftermath of the earthquake, a young woman distributes bottled water to neighbors on a dusty street.
The students lay on the grass, relieved and laughing in the aftermath of their final exams.
✦ Originally an agricultural term in 15th-century English meaning “a second crop of grass after mowing,” from after + Old English mǣth “a mowing.” By the late 1600s it broadened to mean “result or consequence,” especially of disaster.
(agriculture, dated) new grass or crop that grows again on a field after the first mowing or harvest.
The farmer turned his sheep onto the lush aftermath in late summer.
After the hay had been stacked, rain watered the field and soon the aftermath appeared.
✦ From Middle English “after” + Old English mǣth “mowing; a crop of grass,” originally referring only to regrowth of grass after the first cut.
