afterward
Americanadverb
Etymology
Origin of afterward
First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English ÃĶfterweard, alteration (with -r- of ÃĶfter after ) of ÃĶfteweard, equivalent to ÃĶfte-, ÃĶftan aft 1 + -weard -ward
Explanation
If something happens afterward, it occurs after some original event or time. When kids get out of school at 2:00 p.m., teachers generally go home some time afterward. You might attend a reading by an author and then go to the reception afterward, or eat dinner with your family and then go out for ice cream afterward. You can also use the word afterwards â although afterward came first, from the Old English ÃĶftanweard, combining ÃĶftan, "after," and the direction suffix -weard. The original English form, aftward, was a nautical term.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Jay-Z’s daughter Blue Ivy joined him to play piano during “The Story of OJ” and “Dead Presidents II”; he beamed as she walked offstage afterward — a moving vision of fatherly pride.
From Los Angeles Times â Oct. 24, 2026
The Russian leader said afterward that Moscow was ready in principle to rejoin talks with Ukraine and the United States to end the war.
From Barron's â Oct. 22, 2026
One friend would debut a play, naturally, and everyone would come back to my apartment afterward for cocktails and canapés on the fire escape.
From Salon â Oct. 20, 2026
He said the traditional approach to mitigating insider risk relies on verifying someone’s identity and then trusting that what they do afterward is legitimate, which can miss cases where the threat develops over time.
From The Wall Street Journal â Oct. 15, 2026
The contradiction with the ideals of the American Revolution was part of it; some slaveholders freed their enslaved people afterward.
From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, ÂĐ Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American HeritageÂŪ Idioms Dictionary copyright ÂĐ 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
