What is the difference between after and before?
after | before | Antonyms |
Behind; later in time; following.
Subsequently to; following in time; later than.
*
, title=(The Celebrity), chapter=1
, passage=I was about to say that I had known the Celebrity from the time he wore kilts. But I see I will have to amend that, because he was not a celebrity then, nor, indeed, did he achieve fame until some time after I left New York for the West.}}
* {{quote-news, year=2012, date=April 15, author=Phil McNulty, work=BBC
, title= * {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-08, volume=407, issue=8839, page=52, magazine=(The Economist)
, title= Behind.
*
, title=(The Celebrity), chapter=5
, passage=Then came a maid with hand-bag and shawls, and after her a tall young lady. She stood for a moment holding her skirt above the grimy steps,
In pursuit of, seeking.
In allusion to, in imitation of; following or referencing.
Next in importance or rank.
As a result of.
In spite of.
(Used to indicate recent completion of an activity)
*
*
* '>citation
*
*
(dated) According to an author or text.
Denoting the aim or object; concerning; in relation to.
(obsolete) According to the direction and influence of; in proportion to; befitting.
* Francis Bacon
(Signifies that the action of the clause it starts takes place before the action of the other clause).
:
*
*:It is never possible to settle down to the ordinary routine of life at sea until the screw begins to revolve. There is an hour or two, after the passengers have embarked, which is disquieting and fussy.
*1991 , Donald "Shadow" Rimgale (character), (Robert DeNiro) (actor),
*:So you punched out a window for ventilation. Was that before or after you noticed you were standing in a lake of gasoline?
*{{quote-magazine, year=2013, month=May-June, author=
, title= (dated) Later; second (of two); next, following, subsequent
* 1834 , (w), A Narrative of the Life of , Nebraska 1987, p. 72:
* 1886 , (Thomas Hardy),
*
, title=(The Celebrity), chapter=1
, passage=In the old days, […], he gave no evidences of genius whatsoever. He never read me any of his manuscripts, […], and therefore my lack of detection of his promise may in some degree be pardoned. But he had then none of the oddities and mannerisms which I hold to be inseparable from genius, and which struck my attention in after days when I came in contact with the Celebrity.}}
(nautical, where the frame of reference is within the ship) At or towards the stern of a ship.
Earlier than (in time).
* (Jonathan Swift) (1667–1745)
*
, title=(The Celebrity), chapter=5
, passage=We made an odd party before the arrival of the Ten, particularly when the Celebrity dropped in for lunch or dinner.}}
* {{quote-news, year=2011, date=November 11, author=Rory Houston, work=RTE Sport
, title= In front of in space.
* (John Milton) (1608-1674)
*
* {{quote-magazine, year=2013, month=September-October, author=(Henry Petroski)
, magazine=(American Scientist), title= Under consideration, judgment, authority of (someone).
* (John Ayliffe) (1676-1732)
In store for, in the future of (someone).
* (Thomas Carlyle) (1795-1881)
In front of, according to a formal system of ordering items.
At a higher or greater position in a ranking.
* (Bible), (w) i. 15
* (Samuel Johnson) (1709-1784)
At an earlier time.
* , chapter=12
, title= In advance.
At the front end.
* 1896 , (Hilaire Belloc), The Bad Child’s Book of Beasts , :
Before is a antonym of after.
As adverbs the difference between after and before
is that after is behind; later in time; following while before is at an earlier time.As prepositions the difference between after and before
is that after is subsequently to; following in time; later than while before is earlier than (in time).As conjunctions the difference between after and before
is that after is Signifies that the action of the clause it starts takes place before the action of the other clause while before is in advance of the time when.As an adjective after
is later; second (of two); next, following, subsequent.after
English
Alternative forms
* afther * aftre (obsolete)Adverb
(-)- They lived happily ever after .
- I left the room, and the dog bounded after .
Derived terms
* after-effect * aftermarket * aftermath * aftertaste * afterwards * go afterPreposition
(English prepositions)Tottenham 1-5 Chelsea, passage=After early sparring, Spurs started to take control as the interval approached and twice came close to taking the lead. Terry blocked Rafael van der Vaart's header on the line and the same player saw his cross strike the post after Adebayor was unable to apply a touch.}}
The new masters and commanders, passage=From the ground, Colombo’s port does not look like much. Those entering it are greeted by wire fences, walls dating back to colonial times and security posts. For mariners leaving the port after lonely nights on the high seas, the delights of the B52 Night Club and Stallion Pub lie a stumble away.}}
- I can't believe that, after all our advice against gambling, you walked into that casino!
- to look after''' workmen; to enquire '''after''' a friend; to thirst '''after righteousness
- He takes greatness of kingdoms according to bulk and currency, and not after their intrinsic value.
Usage notes
* The Irish English usage example is equivalent to "I had just finished my dinner when .".Derived terms
* after one's own heart * after you * after-five * afternoon * go after * look after * name afterConjunction
(English Conjunctions)David Van Tassel], [http://www.americanscientist.org/authors/detail/lee-dehaan Lee DeHaan
Wild Plants to the Rescue, volume=101, issue=3, magazine=(American Scientist) , passage=Plant breeding is always a numbers game.
Adjective
(head)- I did verily believe in my own mind, that I couldn't fight in that way at all; but my after experience convinced me that this was all a notion.
- The amends he had made in after life were lost sight of in the dramatic glare of the original act.
Usage notes
* As shown in the examples above, the adverb in this nautical usage is (aft) and the related preposition is (abaft).Derived terms
*References
* Andrea Tyler and Vyvyan Evans, "Spatial particles of orientation", in The Semantics of English Prepositions: Spatial Scenes, Embodied Meaning and Cognition , Cambridge University Press, 2003, 0-521-81430 8Statistics
*before
English
Preposition
(English prepositions)- Before this treatise can become of use, two points are necessary.
Estonia 0-4 Republic of Ireland, passage=Stephen Ward then had to time his tackle excellently to deny Tarmo Kink as the Wolves winger slid the ball out of play before the Estonian could attempt to beat Given.}}
- His angel, who shall go / Before them in a cloud and pillar of fire.
- He tried to persuade Cicely to stay away from the ball-room for a fourth dance.she found her mother standing up before the seat on which she had sat all the evening searching anxiously for her with her eyes, and her father by her side.
The Evolution of Eyeglasses, passage=The ability of a segment of a glass sphere to magnify whatever is placed before it was known around the year 1000, when the spherical segment was called a reading stone, essentially what today we might term a frameless magnifying glass or plain glass paperweight.}}
- If a suit be begun before an archdeacon
- The golden ageis before us.
- He that cometh after me is preferred before me.
- The eldest son is before the younger in succession.
Synonyms
* (earlier than in time) by, no later than * (in front of in space) ahead of, in front of * (in front of according to an ordering system) ahead ofAntonyms
* (earlier than in time) after, later than * (in front of in space) behind * (in front of according to an ordering system) afterAdverb
(-)The Mirror and the Lamp, passage=All this was extraordinarily distasteful to Churchill. It was ugly, gross. Never before had he felt such repulsion when the vicar displayed his characteristic bluntness or coarseness of speech. In the present connexion—or rather as a transition from the subject that started their conversation—such talk had been distressingly out of place.}}
- When people call this beast to mind,
They marvel more and more
At such a (little) tail behind,
So LARGE a trunk before .