Etymologically
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afterwards

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /ˈɑːftə.wədz/, US /ˈæf.tɚ.wɚdz/[1]

Etymology

It is afterward with the adverbial genitive ending -s,[2][3] on the pattern of words in -wards.[3] Afterward goes back to Old English æfteweard, from æftan “behind”, the source of aft, and -ward, influenced by after.[4][5][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

At a later time, subsequently: about 1300 in the OED and Etymonline.[7][2]

Semantic evolution

As a noun it has meant the future, or the afterlife, from 1669.[8][7] Afterward without -s is now chiefly American, while afterwards is the usual British form.[9][4]

Timeline

  • c. 1300 – at a later time.[7][2]
  • 1669 – noun, the future.[8]

Modern meaning

Adverb

  1. At a later time; subsequently.

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ a b Soanes, Catherine; Stevenson, Angus, eds. (2004), Concise Oxford English Dictionary, 11th ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
  7. ^ a b c Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  8. ^ a b Kay, Christian; Roberts, Jane; Samuels, Michael; Wotherspoon, Irené, eds. (2009), Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford: Oxford University Press; online edition (2024)
  9. ^ The Chambers Dictionary (2008), 11th ed., Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap