after1 preposition, conjunction, adverbafter2 adjective
afteraf‧ter1 /ˈɑːftə $ ˈæftər/ ●●● S1 W1 preposition, conjunction, adverb 
WORD ORIGINafter1
Origin:
Old English æfterEXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- After a few minutes, she fell asleep.
- After a while, we got tired of waiting and went home.
- After all the trouble I had, Reese didn't even say thank you.
- After dancing, going to the movies is my favorite weekend activity.
- After half an hour we got tired of waiting and went home.
- After ten days, their supplies of water were running low.
- After the dance, a few of us went out for a drink.
- After your letter, I didn't think I'd ever see you again.
- a painting after Rembrandt
- At first I was very nervous, but after a while I began to feel more confident.
- Do you believe in life after death?
- I'm not surprised he left her, after the way she treated him.
- I go swimming every day after work.
- My name is after yours on the list.
- The date should be written after the address.
- The movie starts at a quarter after seven.
- The war ended after another six months of fighting.
- There were several people after me who didn't manage to get into the game.
- What's on after the 6 o'clock news?
- Whose name is after yours on the list?
THESAURUS
preposition after something happens, or after a period of time has passed. After is used especially when talking about the past: · We went for a walk after lunch.· After an hour, we got tired of waiting and went home.· They got married just after Christmas.
preposition after a particular period of time. In is used especially when talking about the future, especially the next few minutes, hours, days etc: · The concert’s due to start in a few minutes.· I’ll come back in an hour.· In a few years’ time, this place will look completely different.
preposition after less than a month, two weeks etc has passed – used especially when the time seems surprisingly short: within a month/two weeks etc: · He developed a headache at lunchtime, and within two hours he was dead.· Within two days of arriving she had managed to upset everyone.
at a time 24 hours, a year etc after now: · A week from now we’ll be in Paris.
(also afterward especially American English) adverb after an event or time you have mentioned: · Jones admitted afterwards that she had been very nervous during the game.· Speaking to reporters afterward, he said the operation had been a success.· He moved to Belgium, and soon afterwards he met Angela.
adverb some time after now or after the time you are talking about: · I’ll tell you about it later when I’m less busy.two months/three years etc later: · James went off, and came back ten minutes later with some food.
adverb formal after something had happened in the past: · The book was published in 1954 and was subsequently translated into fifteen languages.
Longman Language Activatorafter a particular time or event after something happens or after someone does something: · We went for a walk after lunch.· Gingrich won election to the House in 1978, after Flynt retired.· What did you do after leaving school?an hour/two days/a year etc after: · My father died two days after I was born.soon after/not long after: · He joined the army in 1914, and soon after was promoted to the rank of captain.right afteralso straight after British (=immediately after): · Paul rushed home right after school.just after: · My sister and her husband moved west just after their wedding.after that: · The Pirates jumped to a 22-2 lead, and Georgetown never got closer than 16 points after that.· It was terrible: first the gearbox seized and after that the radiator burst.
also afterward American after an event or a time that you have just mentioned: · The operation was rather painful, but I felt a lot better afterwards.· Afterward, Nick said he'd never been so nervous in his life.two years/three months etc afterwards: · A couple of years afterwards I bumped into her in a supermarket.soon/shortly afterwards: · His wife fell ill in June and died soon afterwards.
after something happens or after someone does something -- use this when you are describing a series of events in the order they happened: · Can you remember what happened next?· First, chop up two large onions. Next, fry them until they are golden brown.
some time after now or after the time you are talking about: · I'll tell you about it later when I'm not so busy.· Ronald Reagan joined the Republican Party in 1962 and later became Governor of California.three months/two years/ten days etc later: · A couple of days later I saw her in a downtown bar.later on: · The first part of the film is really boring but it gets better later on.much later (=a long time later): · I found out much later that some of the children I taught had become teachers themselves.later that day/month/year etc: · Later that month we got another letter from them asking for more money.
after you have done something -- use this when you are describing a series of things you did, or when you are giving instructions: · First we played tennis, and then we went swimming.· Add a cup of sugar. Then beat in three eggs.
formal after an event was finished in the past: · The book was published in 1954 and was subsequently translated into fifteen languages.· The six men were subsequently acquitted of all charges, but only after they had served 17 years in prison.
after a particular period of time has passed: after a week/several hours/a long time/a while etc after a period of time has passed: · After half an hour we got tired of waiting and went home.· At first I was very nervous, but after a while I began to feel more confident.after a week/a year etc of (doing) something: · The war ended after another six months of fighting.
: within a month/two weeks/a year etc less than a month etc after something happens, especially when this is an unusually short time: · He was bitten by a snake. Within three hours he was dead.· The fire alarm went off and within minutes the building had been cleared.within a month/a few days etc of doing something: · Within six years of joining the company he was Managing Director.within a short period/spaceBritish of time (= surprisingly quickly): · Within a short space of time, Gerry had managed to offend everyone in the group.
: in a minute/a few hours/a month etc a minute, a few hours after the present time: · She'll be here in a few minutes.· I'll see you again in a day or two.in an hour's time/a few minutes' etc time: · In a few weeks' time I'll be off to university.
: 24 hours/a week/six months/100 years from now at a future time 24 hours, six months etc from now: · A week from now we will be in Paris.· What do you think you'll be doing six months from now?· Four hundred years from now people will still be listening to Mozart .
starting to happen after now or after a particular time also from here on (out) American use this to talk about a new arrangement that is going to start now and then continue in the future: · You'll be working with me from now on.· From here on out I'll come to every meeting, I promise.· From now on Neil is responsible for publicity and marketing.
: from tomorrow/next week etc use this to say that a new rule or arrangement will start at a particular time and will continue from then: · As of the first of July, all back seat passengers must wear seat belts.· The new timetable will come into effect from January 2003.· Starting today Miss Carey will be in charge of the Sales Department.
after a particular time or date: · I'm busy right now. Could you come back sometime after 4 o'clock?· After 1800, more and more people worked in factories.just after (=a short time after): · If they left just after twelve, they should be here soon.
used when a situation starts to exist after something happens, especially if the situation is caused by what has happened: · He found out that I had lied to him, and after that he never trusted me again.· The company started a big new advertising campaign, and business really improved after that.· I'm going to help you for the first two weeks, but after that you'll be working on your own.
use this to talk about something that starts to happen at a time in the past or future, and continues from that time: · The latest sunrise of the winter is Friday; from then on, the dark winter mornings get brighter earlier .· He went to his first football game when he was four, and from then on he was crazy about it.
formal after that - used especially in written instructions, rules, or agreements: · The plants should be watered every day for the first week and twice a week thereafter.· On retirement each employee will receive a lump sum of £10,000 and a regular annual pension thereafter.
also gone British: past 3 o'clock/midnight etc use this when someone is late for something, or when something happens at a later time than it should happen or usually happens: · When we got home it was gone midnight.· We have to get you home. It's past your bedtime.
coming after someone or something else the next person, thing, or time comes just after the one you have just been talking about, or just after the most recent one: · Who was the next president of the United States after Ronald Reagan? · When's the next flight to Miami?the next day/week/month/year: · I finished my classes on the 5th, and the next day I went home to Cleveland.next Thursday/week/August etc (=the one after this Thursday, this week, this August etc): · Next week I'm going on a training course in Seaford.
: the day after/the Saturday after/the week after etc the day etc that comes after the time or event that you are talking about: · Helen arrived on July 20th and I arrived the week after.· The party's not this Thursday but the Thursday after.· The weather changed the morning after we arrived.· I felt rather tired the day after the party.the one after (=the next one): · If we miss the ten o'clock train we'll just have to catch the one after.
: the following day/month/year etc the next day, month etc -- use this when you are describing something that happened in the past: · The following day she woke up with a splitting headache.· They agreed to meet the following week in the Cafe Rouge.
happening some time later , not immediately afterwards: a later date/time/stage etc: · We can sort out the final details at a later stage.in later years/months/centuries etc: · In later centuries Venice lost its former importance and began to go into decline.
formal coming after something you have just mentioned - used especially before plural nouns: · These skills were then handed down to subsequent generations of craftsmen.· Many of Marx's theories were disproved by subsequent events.· The first meeting will be in the City Hall, but all subsequent meetings will be held in the school.
: succeeding weeks/months/years/generations etc in every week, month, year etc that comes after something : · The government started to borrow money in 1961, and the national debt has steadily increased with each succeeding year.· The effects of exposure to atomic radiation at Hiroshima have been passed on to succeeding generations.
formal: the ensuing battle/fight/confusion/panic/days/months etc the battle etc that happens immediately after the events or period of time that you have just mentioned: · Someone shouted 'Fire!' and in the ensuing panic several people were injured.· They met each other several times over the ensuing six months.
: follow-up meeting/visit/interview/treatment etc something that is done after something else in order to check it or make sure that it is successful: · Once you have installed solar heating you will receive regular follow-up visits from our experts.· After each training programme everyone has a follow-up interview with their manager.
: future generations/years/events/work/employees etc the people, years etc that will come in the future: · It is our duty to preserve our culture for future generations.· In future years some of you will regret the decision you have made today.· The company is building apartment buildings for future employees.
to happen after something else especially written if an event or period follows another event or period, it happens after it: · We saw each other a lot in the months that followed.· the long period of stability that followed the warbe followed by something: · The wedding was followed by a big party at the Chelsea Hotel.· Suddenly there was a shout from above, immediately followed by a loud bang.be closely followed by something (=be followed very soon by): · China's first nuclear test in October 1964 was closely followed by a second in May 1965.there followed/follows (=after that there was): · There then followed a long and painful silence.
to happen after something else and often as a result of something else: come after something: · The agreement came after six months of negotiations.· The Napoleonic Wars came after the French Revolution.come three weeks/five days etc after something: · My first chance to talk to her came three days after our quarrel.come after: · The New Stone Age lasted about 1200 years in Britain. The period which came after is known as the Bronze Age.
formal if something such as an argument or a fight ensues , it happens after something else, often as a result of it: · I objected to what he had just said and a heated argument then ensued.· The police were called in to quell the riot that ensued.
especially American if something comes on the heels of something else, it happens very soon after it -- used especially in news reports: come on the heels of something: · The news comes on the heels of the FBI's announcement that last week's crash was caused by mechanical failure.hot/hard on the heels of something British (=immediately after something): · Tuesday's victory came hard on the heels of last week's shock defeat by Manchester United.
if something, especially something bad, happens in the wake of an event, it happens after it and usually as a result of it: · In the wake of Thailand's economic troubles, Malaysia's currency also sank.
the person who does a particular job after someone else someone who takes a position previously held by someone else: somebody's successor: · In January 1947, Secretary of State Byrnes resigned; his successor was General Marshall. · Two weeks after the death of Pope John Paul, the cardinals met to elect his successor.successor to: · Many people regard him as a likely successor to the current managing director.
to be the next person to take an important position or rank after someone else: · Eisenhower was succeeded by John F. Kennedy.succeed to the throne/the presidency/the championship etc (=become the next king, president etc): · Louis XIII succeeded to the throne when he was only nine years old.succeed somebody as King/President/Secretary General etc: · Bailey will succeed Fuller as Director of Operations.
the person who will be the next leader, when the present one dies, or the person who is most likely to be chosen for an important job, when the present person leaves : · Who is next in line when the current leader of North Korea dies?next in line for: · Tom's next in line for the boss's job.next in line to the throne (=next in line to become king or queen): · Edward VIII was succeeded by his younger brother, who was next in line to the throne.
the next leader, queen, president etc is the one that gets that position after someone else: · Who do you think will be the next prime minister?· The next boss was better than the old one.
a book, film etc that comes after an earlier one a book, play or film that continues the story of an earlier book, play or film, usually by the same writer, film-maker etc: · 'Batman 2' was a rare example of a sequel being better than the original.· After the unexpected success of his first film, Rodriguez is making plans for a sequel.sequel to: · the sequel to 'Gone with the Wind'
after someone or something in a list, series, line of people etc · My name is after yours on the list.· You'll find a reference number after each item in the catalogue.· There were several people after me who didn't manage to get into the game.
the next person or thing is the one that comes just after the present one: · Could you ask the next patient to come in, please?· Look at the diagram on the next page.· Turn left at the next traffic light.
in a part of a book, speech that comes later: · This topic will be discussed more fully in a later chapter.
to be the next person or thing after another in a list, series etc · My name should be after yours if the list is alphabetical.· In British and American addresses, the name of the town always comes after the name of the street.· The first line of the poem is 'I wandered lonely as a cloud'. What comes after that?
to be the next person or thing in a list, series, line of people etc: · This book's called 'The Third Dimension'. Which book comes next in the series?· The nurse came out of her office and called out, 'Who's next?'next comes something spoken: · The first three sections of the course are just an introduction. Next comes the difficult bit.
to come after something in a book, series, or list: · Taylor explains his theory in the pages that follow.be followed by something: · In English the letter Q is always followed by a U.· Each chapter is followed by a set of exercises.
when the police are looking for a criminal to look for someone who has been involved in a crime or who has escaped from prison: · Police are still looking for three men who stole £55,000 from a post office in York.· Police searching for the killer of a nine-year-old girl have appealed to the public for help.
informal to be trying to find and catch someone who has done something wrong: · She said she was frightened because the police were after her.· The man we're after is one of the biggest drug-dealers in South America.
to search for a criminal - use this when a large number of police are making an organized search over a wide area: hunt for: · Police are still hunting for the girl's killer.hunt somebody down (=search for a criminal until you find them): · Many opponents of the regime who escaped abroad were later hunted down and killed.
doing things one after the other · It's easier if you count things up in order, so that you don't get confused.· A route is given to the postman, and he makes deliveries in order.
doing things separately and in a particular order, rather than all together: · One by one, the students were called in to be interviewed.· The toy is made so that when you hold the top square, the rest fall down one after another, making a clacking noise.
one person, then the next, then the next etc: · I was hard on my eldest son, and he, in turn, was mean to his little brother.· We distribute the book to charities, and those organizations in turn give the books to needy children.
also take it in turns British if two or more people take turns or take it in turns to do something, they decide to do it in order, one person after another, so that it is shared equally and fairly: · Small children find it almost impossible to take turns.take turns doing something: · We take turns doing the dishes.take turns to do something: · Mandy and Debbie took it in turns to look after the baby.
to be in a very difficult situation informal to be in a difficult situation and not know what to do: · The team's owner is in a fix - he's spent a lot to improve the stadium, but ticket sales are still declining.· Wyck's business consists of helping, for a fee, computer owners who are in a technical fix.
to be in a very difficult or dangerous situation, when there is very little you can do to get out of it: · A mobile phone lets you reach help when you're in a tight spot.· O'Neill had been in tight corners before, but never as tight as this one.put somebody in a tight spot (=give someone a difficult problem): · Losing his job put them in a tight spot financially.
to have so many problems that there is not much hope that things will get better, especially as a result of past mistakes: · The previous manager had left the restaurant's affairs in a terrible mess.get into a mess: · How did you manage to get into this mess in the first place?somebody's life is a mess (=they have a lot of problems and seem unable to deal with them): · Her boyfriend left her and she lost her job - her life is just a mess at the moment.
to be in a difficult situation because whatever you do, you are likely to offend someone or make things worse: · I was in a difficult position, as I was being asked to confront a man who had much more power than I did.put somebody in a difficult/awkward position: · Clara was angry at Harry for putting her in such an awkward position.
to be in an extremely difficult situation, because whatever you do there will certainly be serious trouble: · I'm in an impossible position -- if I criticize him he may resign, but if I don't he'll end up ruining the whole project.put somebody in an impossible position: · By bringing his objections out into the open, the Chancellor has put the Prime Minister in an impossible position.
to be in a very difficult situation and not be able to decide what is the best thing for you to do: · I was in a quandary - I didn't know whether to tell the police or not.· The government has got itself into a quandary over the new tax -- if they abandon it they will be seen as weak, if they keep it they will be very unpopular.
to have very serious problems, especially financial ones, which could have very serious results: · The company is in dire financial straits.· The team is in such dire straits they've even considered selling their three best players.
spoken say this when you have had a series of problems and you feel that these problems will never end: · It's been one thing after another since I started renting out the place to students.· It's one thing after another with that stupid photocopier! What's wrong with it now?
happening or doing something in a series happening one after the other: · Successive nights without sleep make any new parent feel ready to quit.· Jackson became the first batter since Babe Ruth to hit three successive home runs in a single game.· Successive governments have failed to tackle the problem of international debt.
consecutive days, years etc come after one another, with no breaks in between: · The company has made a profit for seven consecutive years.· You must get a doctor's certificate if you're off work sick for more than three consecutive days.
happening immediately one after another in a series, especially in an unusually long series: · The temperatures was 40 degrees below zero for two weeks straight.· She is hoping to beat her personal record of 21 straight victories.
if something happens on a number of occasions, days, years etc in succession , it happens on each of those occasions, days, years etc, without a break: · She's won the championship four times in succession.· It's not advisable to plant wheat in the same field for more than two years in succession.
if a number of events happen one after the other or one after another , each one happens soon after the previous one: · One after another they got up and left the room.· He was so thirsty that he drank five glasses of water, one after the other.· She smoked nervously throughout the meeting, one cigarette after another.
done two or more times, one after another, without a break: · Last week I overslept three days in a row.· The Blazers have won 11 games in a row.
if you do something for the third time, fifth time etc running , you do it that number of times without a break: · This is the fourth time running you've been late.· Spender won the Cambridge Poetry Prize three years running.
two alternate actions, events, feelings etc are done in a fixed order, first one, then the other, then the first one again etc: · He worked alternate night and day shifts.· Italian cities have imposed alternate-day driving rules in an effort to reduce pollution.alternate Sundays/weekends etc (=first one Sunday or weekend, but not the next, then the next Sunday or weekend but not the next etc): · She visits her parents on alternate Sundays.
ways of saying that one thing happens after another · We scraped all the old paint off the bike and then repainted it bright red.· Fry the onions gently, and then add the meat and cook for a few minutes.· First you need to collect all the information and make detailed notes. Then you can start to actually write your essay.
immediately after something - use this especially when the order in which things happen is important: · Everyone started fighting and someone threw a bottle. I forget what happened next.· Which of the candidates shall we interview next?· First you need to select the text you want to move. Next, click on the "Move" command at the top of the screen.
after something happens: · England had a man sent off in the first half, and after that the England team never really looked as though they could win the game.· The exhaust pipe fell off the car just as we were leaving, and after that it was just one disaster after another!
ways of saying what time it is use this when the time is exactly a particular hour: · It's 5 o'clock.· It's exactly 10 o'clock.
also just gone British use this when the time is a little before or after a particular hour: · It's just before 6.· It's just after 10 o'clock.· It's just gone midnight. (=just after)
also of American use this to say that the time is a particular number of minutes before a particular hour: · It's ten to six.· It doesn't get dark until about twenty to ten.· It's a quarter of eleven.· Joe, by the ten of eight you're going upstairs and that's only about a half hour from now.
also after American use this to say that the time is a particular number of minutes after a particular hour: · It's quarter past four.· It's ten after five.· It's quarter after eight, and Laurie's showing up at nine.· It's half past two.
British use this to say that it is almost a particular time, especially when you are guessing what time it might be: · It's getting on for five o'clock.· I should think it's getting on for ten by now.
British informal use this to say that it is exactly a particular time: · "What time is it?" "Bang on midnight."· I make it dead on half past by my watch.· We finished bang on eight, and we were back home by nine.
WORD SETSAD, advance, verbafter, prepositionafternoon, nounalarm, nounalarm clock, nouna.m., Anno Domini, annual, adjectiveApril, nounAsh Wednesday, nounAug., August, nounautumn, nounautumnal, adjectivebank holiday, nounBC, BCE, biannual, adjectivebicentenary, nounbicentennial, nounbiennial, adjectivebimonthly, adjectivebirthday, nounbiweekly, adjectivebonfire night, nounBoxing Day, nounBritish Summer Time, nounBST, nouncalendar, nouncalendar month, nouncalendar year, nouncarriage clock, nouncentenary, nouncentury, nounChristmas, nounChristmas Day, nounChristmas Eve, nounChristmastime, nounchronograph, nounchronological, adjectivechronometer, nouncircadian, adjectiveclock, nouncrystal, nouncuckoo clock, nouncycle, nouncyclic, adjectivedaily, adjectivedaily, adverbdate, noundate, verbdawn, nounday, nounDec., decade, nounDecember, noundiamond anniversary, noundiamond jubilee, noundinnertime, noundiurnal, adjectived.o.b., due date, noundusk, nounface, nounFather's Day, nounfeast, nounFebruary, nounfortnightly, adjectiveFourth of July, the, Fri., Friday, nounGood Friday, nounGreenwich Mean Time, nounGregorian calendar, nounguy, nounGuy Fawkes Night, nounhalf-hourly, adjectivehalf-yearly, adjectiveHalloween, nounhand, nounHanukkah, nounharvest festival, nounHogmanay, nounhorn, nounhour, nounhourglass, nounhour hand, nounhr, Independence Day, nounJan., January, nounjubilee, nounJuly, nounJune, nounLabor Day, nounleap year, nounlunar month, nounmainspring, nounman-hour, nounMar., March, nounMardi Gras, nounmarket day, nounMaundy Thursday, nounMay, nounMay Day, nounMichaelmas, nounmidday, nounmiddle age, nounmiddle-aged, adjectivemidnight, nounMidsummer Day, nounmidweek, adjectivemillennium, nounmin., minute hand, nounMon., Monday, nounmonth, nounmorn, nounmorning, nounMothering Sunday, nounMother's Day, nounmovable feast, nounnew moon, nounNew Year, nounNew Year's Day, nounNew Year's Eve, nounnight, nounnightfall, nounnighttime, nounnocturnal, adjectiveNoel, nounnoon, nounnoonday, adjectiveNov., November, nounOct., October, nounp.a., Pancake Day, nounPDT, penultimate, adjectiveper annum, adverbper diem, adverbperiodic, adjectivep.m., PST, public holiday, nounquarter, nounquotidian, adjectiveRemembrance Day, nounSat., Saturday, nounschoolday, nounseason, nounsecond, nounsecond hand, nounself-winding, adjectiveSeptember, nounshockproof, adjectivesilver anniversary, nounsilver jubilee, nounsilver wedding anniversary, nounsolar year, nounsolstice, nounspring, nounspringtime, nounstandard time, nounstopwatch, nounsummer, nounsummer solstice, nounsummertime, nounsummery, adjectiveSun., Sunday, nounsundown, nounsunrise, nounsunset, nounsun-up, nountercentenary, nounThanksgiving, nounthirty, numberThursday, nountime, nountime, verbtimepiece, nountimer, nountime signal, nountime warp, nountime zone, nountoday, adverbtoday, nountomorrow, adverbtomorrow, nountonight, adverbtonight, nountriennial, adjectiveTuesday, nountwilight, nounWed., Wednesday, nounweek, nounweekday, nounweekend, nounweekly, adjectiveweeknight, nounWhit, nounWhitsun, nounwinter, nounwintertime, nounwk., wristwatch, nounyear, nounyesterday, adverbyr., Yule, nounYuletide, noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY
David went to bed straight after (=immediately after) supper. People still remember the 1958 revolution and what came after (=happened after it). Ten years after he bought the painting, Carswell discovered that it was a fake. Not long after the wedding, his wife became ill. The family moved to Hardingham in June 1983, and Sarah’s first child was born soon after.COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES So she married the prince, and they lived happily ever after (=used at the end of children’s stories to say that someone was happy for the rest of their life). He retired immediately after the end of the war. We moved here just after our son was born. You could tell that the horse had been well looked after. It’s on right after the six o'clock news. a much sought-after defense lawyer
David went to bed straight after (=immediately after) supper. People still remember the 1958 revolution and what came after (=happened after it). Ten years after he bought the painting, Carswell discovered that it was a fake. (=the next day, week etc) His car was outside your house the morning after Bob’s engagement party. I’ll see you again tomorrow or the day after. She retired from politics the year after she received the Nobel Prize.
His car was outside your house the morning after Bob’s engagement party. I’ll see you again tomorrow or the day after. She retired from politics the year after she received the Nobel Prize. Not long after the wedding, his wife became ill. The family moved to Hardingham in June 1983, and Sarah’s first child was born soon after. (=someone who helps a criminal before or after the crime)
· Children with both parents working long hours need after-school care.
· How about meeting for lunch the day after tomorrow?
(=place that people want to visit)· the Himalayas, one of the world's most sought-after destinations
So she married the prince, and they lived happily ever after (=used at the end of children’s stories to say that someone was happy for the rest of their life). He retired immediately after the end of the war. We moved here just after our son was born. You could tell that the horse had been well looked after. It’s on right after the six o'clock news. a much sought-after defense lawyer (=someone who makes speeches after formal meals)· As every after-dinner speaker knows, a joke or two is always much appreciated.
(=after a formal dinner)· He gets paid a lot for making after-dinner speeches.
· It was well after ten o'clock when we arrived.
PHRASES FROM THE ENTRY► be after somebody/something► one after another/one after the other► day after day/year after year etcPHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES► be after somebody’s blood► ever after► a man/woman etc after my own heart► one after another/one after the other► be patterned on/after something► shut/close the stable door after the horse has bolted► time after time/time and time again► be wise after the event► year after year/year in, year out
1when a particular event or time has happened, or when someone has done something OPP before: - He wrote to say they couldn't give me a job after all.
- I don't know why you're so concerned; after all, it isn't your problem.
- Rita didn't have my pictures after all - Jake did.
- But some things are private, after all.
- Is that on the cards, or has Unesco got some rules that he is going to enforce after all?
- It was her father's home, after all.
- It was their country, after all.
- Printing and presentation should be as attractive as possible - after all the library is an attractive place isn't it?
- Something should be celebrated after all, in these dim days.
- These are, after all, very familiar species.
- But after all, what would his friends have said?
- Even college students, after all, eventually go to work.
- He will read some of the headlines aloud and discuss them after they have gone over the exercises.
- It was fun to use, after all.
- It was, after all, 1906, a time of growing, not diminishing, racial separation everywhere else.
- Plant them as soon as possible after you buy them.
- Ryker vaulted the barrier and ran after them, slipping one hand into his jacket, touching the hilt of the knife.
- Dan Ashton had chased after him with it.
- Dear heaven, Laura thought, trotting after him with her string bag and her blanket.
- For instance, the animal is coming after you with the idea of tearing your head off.
- He had taken long strides and I had trotted after him with my tiny steps.
- He would chase after them with me in hot pursuit, so he had to go back.
- I heard my men going after him with their guns - and then everything went black.
- I looked back and saw them coming after me with the broom.
- One of my defensemen went after it with an attacking forward.
- Ever since we moved into this house, it's been one problem after another.
- He's had one problem after another this year.
- As they came ashore herrings fell off, one after another.
- Autumn drew on in Mitford, and one after another, the golden days were illumined with changing light.
- Deliberate and unhurried, he tried them one after another in the lock under the white, nineteenth-century china handle.
- Just moments, one after another, instead of living so many years ahead of each day.
- Just one after another on the streets.
- On Saturday evenings everybody in the family had a bath one after another in an old tin bath in front of the fire.
- The hummingbird which feeds on it must therefore visit many plants, one after another.
- This central area was the scene of three great changes, one after another.
- Badgers usually only venture out after dark, so they can be difficult to spot.
- I have often come out here alone after dark to breathe it in.
- If McQuaid had a big order to fill he mightn't come till after dark.
- Not many people chose to take a ride on such a bumpy, gloomy road after dark in the month of January.
- Start in the morning and not go home until dark.
- That evening I was all right - Joanna would be afloat in the late afternoon, and I could get away before dark.
- We had been too nervous to arrive after dark.
- We worked from early morning until dark.
- The same exercises can get boring if you do them day after day.
- How, he asked himself, how could one put up with that, day after day.
- On the radio, the same things get hashed and rehashed, over and over, day after day.
- Otherwise, day after day, a restlessness had seized her again, to be afraid.
- She saw in her mind the woman who sat in the same seat day after day.
- Smashing down mogul fields all day long, day after day, sounds great to skiers in their 20s.
- The day before, I was on the battlefield with them, on the floor day after day...
- The jobs are nothing - just the same thing, day after day.
- The whole office, we just observed this stuff as it was happening, day after day.
- Few people even heard about the concert until after the fact.
- But solving the problem is not so simple, especially after the fact.
- Even after the fact, their violent behaviour just did not make sense.
- Explanations after the facts are of course very useful but the hallmark of a successful research programme is predictions.
- For the field man who deals with real problems, paper work is incidental, after the fact.
- The jury also acquitted the rapper, whose real name is Calvin Broadus, of being an accessory after the fact.
- Then they acquitted Broadus of being an accessory after the fact.
- To make such decisions after the fact can be costly-even fatal.
- Will I follow you down the street a hundred years after the fact?
- The group learns to ride and lasso after a fashion.
- Aunt Lou seldom approved of the people who lived above her, but it worked after a fashion.
- Broadman, who could read after a fashion, peered over the top of the volume.
- Grubbing for business on dud leads was, at least, after a fashion dealing.
- It has worked, after a fashion.
- Kissing continues, after a fashion, but tongues now completely verboten.
- So they became friends, after a fashion.
- The gates clanged shut again, Berwick succoured, after a fashion, with a day to go.
- You met him ... Well, after a fashion, you met him ten years ago or so.
- His early work is very much after the fashion of Faulkner and O'Connor.
- Once, he had considered its aged look as just the thing, after the fashion of the Boston Cracked Shoe look.
- Concentrate on the truth, advised Eric Gill, and let beauty look after itself.
- No doubt many more boys were up to the same tricks, but convention ruled that they were better able to look after themselves.
- Remember, at the same time as you are looking after yourself, you are protecting them.
- Respecting yourself means looking after yourself.
- That's all for now, look after yourselves, and make sure you don't overdo things, Gwen.
- The pup must now look after itself.
- We have sheltered accommodation, with understanding professional staff, for blind men and women who are unable to look after themselves.
- You knew how to look after yourself, he said.
- But now she can look after herself.
- It is generally assumed that at postgraduate level and above users can look after themselves.
- I'm just doing the same old thing month after month.
- And then following in her footsteps, month after month, as if he stood a chance.
- But month after month Clarisa and I went on sleeping with our son between us.
- Day after day, month after month, I followed death.
- How must it be to work here day after day, month after month, knowing there was no end to it?
- I learned on the job, at sea, working seven days a week, month after month.
- Our salaries were not paid, month after month.
- The Azusa Street revival itself continued day after day, month after month for three years.
- These limits were then overshot by month after month of interest rates above 14%.
- From them I learned that the coronation was to be on the day after next, and not in three weeks.
- I think it might be the week after next.
- The case will be heard in London's High Court the week after next.
- We shall meet the day after next.
- We won't be able to cut the grass the week after next, as I'd hoped.
- He sat up night after night to finish the game.
- Everything took getting used to, she said, saying the same thing night after night, softly in the darkness.
- Girls of four don't wet their beds night after night.
- Neither of us, night after night, could get too much of that.
- She came night after night, looking for some one who would love her.
- She had slept in the chair in his room, night after night, holding his hand.
- Stoker watched Irving on stage night after night.
- The United States appeared to be careening out of control and television recorded every conflagration and confrontation without respite night after night.
- You can dream and dream but only what happens in this room night after night is important.
- But Lucie stayed after all, to play Balaam, and Izzie to play her pipe beforehand.
- I stayed after hours doing murals on tailgates.
- I had a friend who worked for the oil people, and I decided to stay after a visit to this place.
- I have never once heard a staff member say that wouldn't stay after the school day for some activity or other.
- In May, when the time changes and the weather mellows, the team will stay after the games to picnic.
- Keegan is desperate to stay after savouring his first taste in management by keeping United in the Second Division.
- She went so far as to make special transportation arrangements for some students to stay after school to finish their assignments.
- Some stay after class and follow me devotedly around the campus.
- Just one damn thing after another.
- She was merely coping with one thing after another, not achieving.
- Then it was one thing after another, his obese stage, his alcoholic stage.
- We keep practicing the same dance steps week in, week out.
- And this guy turns up, in Room 302, week after week after week.
- But even though week after week the jokes were the same, we always laughed.
- I understood how week after week he was all Clarisa needed.
- Nicholas Church were occupied, week after week, by faithful Communists.
- Not week after week, anyway.
- The list will not be long because you tend to purchase the same food products week after week. 9.
After the war many soldiers stayed in France. I go swimming every day after work. Do you believe in life after death? The first attack started just after midnight. David went to bed straight after (=immediately after) supper. After you’d called the police, what did you do? Zimmerman changed his name after he left Germany. People still remember the 1958 revolution and what came after (=happened after it).after doing something After leaving school, Mackay worked in a restaurant for a year.two days/three weeks etc after (something) Ten years after he bought the painting, Carswell discovered that it was a fake.the day/week/year etc after (something) (=the next day, week etc) His car was outside your house the morning after Bob’s engagement party. I’ll see you again tomorrow or the day after. She retired from politics the year after she received the Nobel Prize.soon/not long/shortly after (something) Not long after the wedding, his wife became ill. The family moved to Hardingham in June 1983, and Sarah’s first child was born soon after.2when a particular amount of time has passed OPP before: After ten minutes remove the cake from the oven. You’ll get used to it after a while. After months of negotiation, an agreement was finally reached.3following someone or something else in a list or a piece of writing, or in order of importance: Whose name is after yours on the list? The date should be written after the address. After football, tennis is my favourite sport. The UK is the world’s third largest arms producer, after the USA and Russia.4American English used when telling the time to say how many minutes have passed since a particular hour SYN past British English: The movie starts at a quarter (=fifteen minutes) after seven.5day after day/year after year etc continuously for a very long time: He’s worked in that same office week after week, year after year, since he was 18.6a)following someone in order to stop or speak to them: Go after him and apologize. I heard someone running after me, and a voice called my name. b)in the direction of someone who has just left: ‘Good luck,’ she called after me as I left. Harry stood in the doorway gazing after her.7when someone has left a place or has finished doing something: Remember to close the door after you. I spend all day cleaning up after the kids.8because of something that happened earlier: I’m not surprised he walked out, after the way she treated him. After your letter, I didn’t think I’d ever see you again.9in spite of something that was done in the past: How can you treat me like this after all I’ve done for you?10when you have passed a particular place or travelled a certain distance along a road: Turn left after the hotel. After a mile you will come to a crossroads.11be after somebody/something a)to be looking for someone or something: That boy’s always in trouble – the police are after him again. ‘Were you after anything in particular?’ ‘No, we’re just looking.’ b)informal to want to have something that belongs to someone else: I think Chris is after my job.12one after another/one after the other if a series of events or actions happen one after another, each one happens soon after the previous one: Ever since we moved here it’s been one problem after another.13after all a)in spite of what you thought was true or expected to happen: He wrote to say they couldn’t give me a job after all. Union leaders announced that they would, after all, take part in the national conference. b)used to say that something should be remembered or considered, because it helps to explain what you have just said: Prisoners should be treated with respect – they are human beings after all. I don’t know why you’re so concerned – it isn’t your problem after all.14 especially British English used to say who or what first had the name that someone or something has been given: His name is Alessandro, after his grandfather. It was named Waterloo Bridge, after the famous battle.15formal in the same style as a particular painter, musician etc: a painting after Rembrandt16a)after you spoken used to say politely that someone else can use or do something before you do: ‘Do you need the copier?’ ‘After you.’ b)after you with something used to ask someone if you can have or use something after they have finished: After you with that knife, please. → a man/woman after my own heart at heart1(22), → take after at take1THESAURUSafter preposition after something happens, or after a period of time has passed. After is used especially when talking about the past: · We went for a walk after lunch.· After an hour, we got tired of waiting and went home.· They got married just after Christmas.in preposition after a particular period of time. In is used especially when talking about the future, especially the next few minutes, hours, days etc: · The concert’s due to start in a few minutes.· I’ll come back in an hour.· In a few years’ time, this place will look completely different.within preposition after less than a month, two weeks etc has passed – used especially when the time seems surprisingly short: within a month/two weeks etc: · He developed a headache at lunchtime, and within two hours he was dead.· Within two days of arriving she had managed to upset everyone.24 hours/a year etc from now at a time 24 hours, a year etc after now: · A week from now we’ll be in Paris.afterwards (also afterward especially American English) adverb after an event or time you have mentioned: · Jones admitted afterwards that she had been very nervous during the game.· Speaking to reporters afterward, he said the operation had been a success.· He moved to Belgium, and soon afterwards he met Angela.later adverb some time after now or after the time you are talking about: · I’ll tell you about it later when I’m less busy.two months/three years etc later: · James went off, and came back ten minutes later with some food.subsequently adverb formal after something had happened in the past: · The book was published in 1954 and was subsequently translated into fifteen languages.after1 preposition, conjunction, adverbafter2 adjective
afterafter2 adjective [only before noun] EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- the after deck
- A packed Hall of graduates and undergraduates gave Baroness Park an affectionate standing ovation at the end of her after dinner speech.
- Abaft the after head is a large locker accessed either through a door in the head or from the cockpit.
- Our friendly wine bar is also there for your pre-show drink, your interval glass of wine or your after show socialising.
- Several men in the after shell-room lingered there too long... and were drowned.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES So she married the prince, and they lived happily ever after (=used at the end of children’s stories to say that someone was happy for the rest of their life). He retired immediately after the end of the war. We moved here just after our son was born. You could tell that the horse had been well looked after. It’s on right after the six o'clock news. a much sought-after defense lawyer
(=someone who helps a criminal before or after the crime)
· Children with both parents working long hours need after-school care.
· How about meeting for lunch the day after tomorrow?
(=place that people want to visit)· the Himalayas, one of the world's most sought-after destinations
So she married the prince, and they lived happily ever after (=used at the end of children’s stories to say that someone was happy for the rest of their life). He retired immediately after the end of the war. We moved here just after our son was born. You could tell that the horse had been well looked after. It’s on right after the six o'clock news. a much sought-after defense lawyer (=someone who makes speeches after formal meals)· As every after-dinner speaker knows, a joke or two is always much appreciated.
(=after a formal dinner)· He gets paid a lot for making after-dinner speeches.
· It was well after ten o'clock when we arrived.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSNOUN· Well the after dinner speaker is none other than Dave Bassett of Sheffield United.· It lay among the daily stack until after dinner.· A packed Hall of graduates and undergraduates gave Baroness Park an affectionate standing ovation at the end of her after dinner speech.
· The steering group is exploring the needs for after school care and is looking at possible locations for schemes.· She could wait to look for another job until after school started in the fall.· So when they played after school, they improvised by kicking a tennis ball.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES► be after somebody’s blood► ever after► a man/woman etc after my own heart► one after another/one after the other► be patterned on/after something► shut/close the stable door after the horse has bolted► time after time/time and time again► be wise after the event► year after year/year in, year out
1in after years literary in the years after the time that has been mentioned2 technical in the back part of a boat or an aircraft- Ever since we moved into this house, it's been one problem after another.
- He's had one problem after another this year.
- As they came ashore herrings fell off, one after another.
- Autumn drew on in Mitford, and one after another, the golden days were illumined with changing light.
- Deliberate and unhurried, he tried them one after another in the lock under the white, nineteenth-century china handle.
- Just moments, one after another, instead of living so many years ahead of each day.
- Just one after another on the streets.
- On Saturday evenings everybody in the family had a bath one after another in an old tin bath in front of the fire.
- The hummingbird which feeds on it must therefore visit many plants, one after another.
- This central area was the scene of three great changes, one after another.
- Badgers usually only venture out after dark, so they can be difficult to spot.
- I have often come out here alone after dark to breathe it in.
- If McQuaid had a big order to fill he mightn't come till after dark.
- Not many people chose to take a ride on such a bumpy, gloomy road after dark in the month of January.
- Start in the morning and not go home until dark.
- That evening I was all right - Joanna would be afloat in the late afternoon, and I could get away before dark.
- We had been too nervous to arrive after dark.
- We worked from early morning until dark.
- The same exercises can get boring if you do them day after day.
- How, he asked himself, how could one put up with that, day after day.
- On the radio, the same things get hashed and rehashed, over and over, day after day.
- Otherwise, day after day, a restlessness had seized her again, to be afraid.
- She saw in her mind the woman who sat in the same seat day after day.
- Smashing down mogul fields all day long, day after day, sounds great to skiers in their 20s.
- The day before, I was on the battlefield with them, on the floor day after day...
- The jobs are nothing - just the same thing, day after day.
- The whole office, we just observed this stuff as it was happening, day after day.
- Few people even heard about the concert until after the fact.
- But solving the problem is not so simple, especially after the fact.
- Even after the fact, their violent behaviour just did not make sense.
- Explanations after the facts are of course very useful but the hallmark of a successful research programme is predictions.
- For the field man who deals with real problems, paper work is incidental, after the fact.
- The jury also acquitted the rapper, whose real name is Calvin Broadus, of being an accessory after the fact.
- Then they acquitted Broadus of being an accessory after the fact.
- To make such decisions after the fact can be costly-even fatal.
- Will I follow you down the street a hundred years after the fact?
- The group learns to ride and lasso after a fashion.
- Aunt Lou seldom approved of the people who lived above her, but it worked after a fashion.
- Broadman, who could read after a fashion, peered over the top of the volume.
- Grubbing for business on dud leads was, at least, after a fashion dealing.
- It has worked, after a fashion.
- Kissing continues, after a fashion, but tongues now completely verboten.
- So they became friends, after a fashion.
- The gates clanged shut again, Berwick succoured, after a fashion, with a day to go.
- You met him ... Well, after a fashion, you met him ten years ago or so.
- His early work is very much after the fashion of Faulkner and O'Connor.
- Once, he had considered its aged look as just the thing, after the fashion of the Boston Cracked Shoe look.
- Concentrate on the truth, advised Eric Gill, and let beauty look after itself.
- No doubt many more boys were up to the same tricks, but convention ruled that they were better able to look after themselves.
- Remember, at the same time as you are looking after yourself, you are protecting them.
- Respecting yourself means looking after yourself.
- That's all for now, look after yourselves, and make sure you don't overdo things, Gwen.
- The pup must now look after itself.
- We have sheltered accommodation, with understanding professional staff, for blind men and women who are unable to look after themselves.
- You knew how to look after yourself, he said.
- But now she can look after herself.
- It is generally assumed that at postgraduate level and above users can look after themselves.
- I'm just doing the same old thing month after month.
- And then following in her footsteps, month after month, as if he stood a chance.
- But month after month Clarisa and I went on sleeping with our son between us.
- Day after day, month after month, I followed death.
- How must it be to work here day after day, month after month, knowing there was no end to it?
- I learned on the job, at sea, working seven days a week, month after month.
- Our salaries were not paid, month after month.
- The Azusa Street revival itself continued day after day, month after month for three years.
- These limits were then overshot by month after month of interest rates above 14%.
- From them I learned that the coronation was to be on the day after next, and not in three weeks.
- I think it might be the week after next.
- The case will be heard in London's High Court the week after next.
- We shall meet the day after next.
- We won't be able to cut the grass the week after next, as I'd hoped.
- He sat up night after night to finish the game.
- Everything took getting used to, she said, saying the same thing night after night, softly in the darkness.
- Girls of four don't wet their beds night after night.
- Neither of us, night after night, could get too much of that.
- She came night after night, looking for some one who would love her.
- She had slept in the chair in his room, night after night, holding his hand.
- Stoker watched Irving on stage night after night.
- The United States appeared to be careening out of control and television recorded every conflagration and confrontation without respite night after night.
- You can dream and dream but only what happens in this room night after night is important.
- But Lucie stayed after all, to play Balaam, and Izzie to play her pipe beforehand.
- I stayed after hours doing murals on tailgates.
- I had a friend who worked for the oil people, and I decided to stay after a visit to this place.
- I have never once heard a staff member say that wouldn't stay after the school day for some activity or other.
- In May, when the time changes and the weather mellows, the team will stay after the games to picnic.
- Keegan is desperate to stay after savouring his first taste in management by keeping United in the Second Division.
- She went so far as to make special transportation arrangements for some students to stay after school to finish their assignments.
- Some stay after class and follow me devotedly around the campus.
- Just one damn thing after another.
- She was merely coping with one thing after another, not achieving.
- Then it was one thing after another, his obese stage, his alcoholic stage.
- We keep practicing the same dance steps week in, week out.
- And this guy turns up, in Room 302, week after week after week.
- But even though week after week the jokes were the same, we always laughed.
- I understood how week after week he was all Clarisa needed.
- Nicholas Church were occupied, week after week, by faithful Communists.
- Not week after week, anyway.
- The list will not be long because you tend to purchase the same food products week after week. 9.