after
In addition to the uses shown below, after is used in phrasal verbs such as `ask after', `look after', and `take after'.
1 prep If something happens after a particular date or event, it happens during the period of time that follows that date or event., (Antonym: before)
After 19 May, strikes were occurring on a daily basis..., After breakfast Amy ordered a taxi..., It wasn't until after Christmas that I met Paul.
After is also a conjunction., conj
After Don told me this, he spoke of his mother..., Marina cared for him after he seriously injured his eye several years ago.
2 prep If you do one thing after doing another, you do it during the period of time that follows the other thing.
PREP -ing (Antonym: before)
After completing and signing it, please return the form to us in the envelope provided., ...women who have changed their mind after deciding not to have children...
3 prep You use after when you are talking about time. For example, if something is going to happen during the day after or the weekend after a particular time, it is going to happen during the following day or during the following weekend.
n PREP n
She's leaving the day after tomorrow.
After is also an adverb., adv ADV after v
Tomorrow. Or the day after.
4 prep If you go after someone, you follow or chase them.
He walked out, and Louise went after him., ...people who were after him for large amounts of money.
5 prep If you are after something, you are trying to get it.
They were after the money..., I did eventually find what I was after.
6 prep If you call, shout, or stare after someone, you call, shout, or stare at them as they move away from you.
`Come back!' he called after me...
7 prep If you tell someone that one place is a particular distance after another, you mean that it is situated beyond the other place and further away from you.
(=past) (Antonym: before)
A few kilometres after the village, turn right to Montelabate.
8 prep If one thing is written after another thing on a page, it is written following it or underneath it.
(=following)
I wrote my name after Penny's.
9 prep You use after in order to give the most important aspect of something when comparing it with another aspect.
After Germany, America is Britain's second-biggest customer...
10 prep To be named after someone means to be given the same name as them.
(BRIT)
He persuaded Virginia to name the baby after him.
in AM, use for
11 convention If you say `after you' to someone, you are being polite and allowing them to go in front of you or through a doorway before you do., (politeness)
12 prep After is used when telling the time. If it is, for example, ten after six, the time is ten minutes past six.
(AM, Antonym: before)
14 If you do something to several things one after the other or one after another, you do it to one, then the next, and so on, with no break between your actions.
one after the other/one after another phrase
Sybil ate three biscuits, one after the other...
15 If something happens day after day or year after year, it happens every day or every year, for a long time.
day after day/year after year phrase ...people who'd been coming here year after year.
after-
After- is added to nouns to form adjectives which indicate that something takes place or exists after an event or process. comb in adj ADJ n
...an after-dinner speech..., After-tax profit fell by 28 percent.
after-effect (after-effects plural )
in AM, use aftereffect The after-effects of an event, experience, or substance are the conditions which result from it. n-count usu pl
...people still suffering from the after-effects of the world's worst nuclear accident...
after-hours
You use after-hours to describe activities which happen after the end of the usual time for them. adj ADJ n
The school offers after-hours childcare...
after-sales service (after-sales services plural )A company's after-sales service is all the help and information that it provides to customers after they have bought a particular product. (BUSINESS) n-var
...a local retailer who offers a good after-sales service..., They are also attempting to keep the car buyer as a long-term customer by offering after-sales service.
after-school
After-school activities are those that are organized for children in the afternoon or evening after they have finished school. adj ADJ n
...an after-school childcare scheme.
morning-after pill (morning-after pills plural )The morning-after pill is a pill that a woman can take some hours after having sex to prevent herself from becoming pregnant. n-count usu the N in sing
sought-after
Something that is sought-after is in great demand, usually because it is rare or of very good quality. adj
An Olympic gold medal is the most sought-after prize in world sport.
