German word

nachdem

Pronunciation

IPA/naːxˈdeːm/

Meaning

  • conjunctionafter

Example

Nachdem er gegessen hatte, ging er spazieren.

After he had eaten, he went for a walk.

Illustration for nachdem (after)

More examples

Nachdem ich gegessen habe, mache ich die Hausaufgaben.

After I have eaten, I do my homework.

Core concept

One completed action opens a gate to the later action in the main clause.

Common phrases

  • Nachdem ich gegessen habe

    after I have eaten

  • Nachdem er angekommen war

    after he had arrived

  • Nachdem sie die Prüfung bestanden hatte

    after she had passed the exam

Similar words

bevor: Marks an action as occurring before another event.
wenn: Marks an action that recurs whenever another event occurs.
sobald: Marks an action that follows immediately after another event occurs.
als: Marks the time of a single event in the past.

Definition in German

Nachdem ist eine unterordnende Konjunktion, die einen abgeschlossenen Vorgang vor einem anderen markiert und im Nebensatz das Verb an das Satzende stellt.

Word origin

The conjunction nachdem arose when the prepositional phrase nach dem was reanalyzed and fused into one grammatical word.

Usage tips

  • In past narration, Plusquamperfekt commonly places the nachdem event before another past event, while Perfekt is also possible in conversational German.

Opposites

Word lists with this word