What is After in English? All the knowledge about After in English

After is a very commonly used vocabulary word in English with diverse functions and formulas. This PREP article will comprehensively summarize all the knowledge about After in English. If you haven't really understood and grasped how to use it properly, don't miss this!

I. What is After in English?

Below, PREP will share with you the definition, idioms and common phrasal verbs.

1. Definition

In English, After serves as a preposition, adverb and conjunction. The After in English meaning is: in the time following (an event or another period of time); during the period of time following an event. The verb after After will be in the V-ing form.

Example:

• After running for 1 hour, Kathy went home and had breakfast. 

• After graduating, Martin has been working as a teacher until now. 

Note: The subject in the 2 clauses of the sentence must be the same in order to omit it and use the structure "After + V-ing".

Example: 

• Jenny went shopping then she cooked dinner for us. ➡ After going shopping, Jenny cooked dinner for us. 

• Martin failed his interview, he felt very disappointed. ➡ After failing the interview, Martin felt very disappointed. 

2. Phrasal verbs & phrases go with After in English

II. Specific structures and usage of After in English grammar

After understanding the definition, let's go through the usage of different structures of After in English grammar!

General formula for After:

Clause 1 + After + Clause 2

Specific structures of After:

1. After + past perfect + simple past

After in English is used to describe an action that occurs after another action has been completed.

Structure:

AFTER +  past perfect + simple past 

= Past perfect + BEFORE + simple past 

Example:

• After Hanna had done her homework, she played football with her friends. = Hanna had done her homework before she played football with her friends.

• Martin went home after he had finished work at the office. = Before Martin went home, he had finished work at the office.

2. After + simple past + simple present

After in English is used to express an action/event that happened in the past and became a habit or recurring action.

Structure: 

After + simple past + simple present 

Example:

• After he finished his homework, he goes out to play. 

• After she finished her work, she starts her daily exercise routine. 

3. After simple past + simple past

After in English is used to describe two consecutive actions that occurred in the past.

Structure: 

After + simple past + simple past 

Example:

• After Jenny and John discussed for 3 hours, they solved their problem. 

• After Sara came to visit Peter, they had lunch together. 

4. After + present perfect/simple present + simple future

After in English is used to express an action that will happen after another action is completed in the present or future.

Structure: 

After + present perfect/ simple present + simple future 

Example:

• After Jenny has spoken to them, she’ll call you. 

• After Harry has booked the airline ticket, he will go to Korea. 

5. After + V-ing

The "After + V-ing" structure means "after doing something", used to connect two clauses with the same subject.

Example:

• After studying abroad, Harry will work for a multinational company. = After Harry studies abroad, Harry will work for a multinational company.

• After she passes the exam, she will go on a trip. 

Note: When referring to past actions, in addition to using the "After + V-ing" structure, you can also use "After + having + past participle".

Example: He wrote his first book after returning/ having returned from Korea. 

IV. Rewriting sentences using After and Before

After and Before are two very familiar words for English learners and often appear in English tests. Let's explore the structure of rewriting sentences with After and Before below.

Example:

• Anna studies her lessons before she takes the exam. ➞ Anna takes the exam after she studies her lessons.

• John checks his email before he starts work. ➞ John starts work after he checks his email. 

V. Important notes when using After in English

In addition to the basic formulas with After in English mentioned above, we also need to pay attention to some other cases to avoid mistakes:

VI. Exercises on using After in English

After learning the series of theories about After in English above, let's practice the exercises below together to better remember the knowledge:

1. Exercises

Exercise 1: Rewrite the following sentences using After

1. Harry finished all his work. Harry came home.

➡ _______________________________

2. Anna arrived then John went out.

➡ ______________________

3. Sara had completed her math homework. Sara watched a movie to relax.

➡ _____________________________________________

4. Kathy will finally come back this week. Kathy has been on a business trip for a month.

➡ _______________________________________________________

5. Peter ate all the ice cream, now he began to feel sick.

➡ ____________________________________

Exercise 2: Choose the correct answer:

1. Jack came home ___ at school, and ___ a short break, he started doing his homework.

   1. after the whole day – after taking

   2. after all the days – after take

   3. the whole after day – after to take

2. ___ the text carefully, find the key word in this story, and ___, study the two main characters’ actions all along the scene, and what their relationships have become long after…

   1. After to read – after last

   2. After read – after whole

   3. After reading – afterwards

3. Jackson’ll give you the key to the room ___ it.

   1. After he leaved

   2. After he has left

   3. After he leaving

4. ___ your own exercises, wipe the board, and ___ close the door carefully ___ all the lights off.

   1. Afterwards finishing – after all – after switched

   2. After finishing – afterwards – after switching

   3. After to finish – after then – after to switch

5.  ____ up early, you take a huge breakfast, ___ you go skiing: I advise you to start with a blue run (a gentle slope) and ___, do a black track.

   1. After to woke – short after –long after

   2. After woken – and after – short after

   3. After waking – and then – afterwards

2. Answers

The above is the complete knowledge about After in English that you need to master. Don't forget to combine doing exercises daily to solidify the theories.