Usage note
之后表示时间上的后面。
zhī hòu biǎo shì shí jiān shàng de hòu miàn。
之后 means after that or later.
Context note
之后常用于讲顺序和时间。
zhī hòu cháng yòng yú jiǎng shùn xù hé shí jiān。
It is often used to describe order and time.
5 examples
吃饭之后去散步。
chī fàn zhī hòu qù sàn bù。
Go for a walk after eating.
放学之后我回家。
fàng xué zhī hòu wǒ huí jiā。
I go home after school.
会议之后再讨论。
huì yì zhī hòu zài tǎo lùn。
We will discuss it after the meeting.
十分钟之后开始。
shí fēn zhōng zhī hòu kāi shǐ。
It will start ten minutes later.
看完之后请告诉我。
kàn wán zhī hòu qǐng gào sù wǒ。
Please tell me after you finish watching.
5 mini stories
她上课之后去图书馆。
tā shàng kè zhī hòu qù tú shū guǎn。
She went to the library after class.
雨停了之后，大家出来玩。
yǔ tíng le zhī hòu， dà jiā chū lái wán。
After the rain stopped, everyone came out to play.
考试之后，学生们都很放松。
kǎo shì zhī hòu， xué shēng men dōu hěn fàng sōng。
After the exam, the students were all relaxed.
午饭之后，老师休息了一会儿。
wǔ fàn zhī hòu， lǎo shī xiū xi le yí huì er。
After lunch, the teacher rested for a while.
开会之后，他们一起去吃饭。
kāi huì zhī hòu， tā men yì qǐ qù chī fàn。
After the meeting, they went to eat together.
Mini dialogue
放学之后
A
放学之后你想做什么？
Fàngxué zhīhòu nǐ xiǎng zuò shénme?
What do you want to do after school?
B
之后我想去公园玩。
Zhīhòu wǒ xiǎng qù gōngyuán wán.
Afterwards I want to go play at the park.
吃饭之后
A
吃饭之后要刷牙。
Chīfàn zhīhòu yào shuāyá.
After eating you need to brush your teeth.
B
好的，我吃完饭之后就去刷牙。
Hǎo de, wǒ chī wán fàn zhīhòu jiù qù shuāyá.
Okay, I'll go brush my teeth right after I finish eating.
Related words and contrasts
opposite
以前
yǐ qián
before
之后 means after, 以前 means before
similar
然后
rán hòu
then, afterwards
然后 is used to show the next step in a sequence
similar
后来
hòu lái
later, afterwards
后来 refers to a later time in a story