1

I understand this may have been explained before but I'm not able to get the nuance of these 2 grammar phrases

  1. ごはんを　たべてから　はを　みがきます

  2. ごはんを　たべた　あとで　はを　みがきます

As in (1) ....Can 〜てから be used this way?If yes, what is the actual difference between these 2 sentences.

Improve this question

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
1

Both are grammatical, and both connect two events in sequence, but they work differently and have different meaning.

から is a relatively easy word for English speakers. It means "from", both literally and metaphorically (as in, drawing a conclusion from appropriate premises). ごはんを　たべてから　はを　みがきます -> "because (I'm) eating food, (I will) brush my teeth".

あと is a noun; it's sometimes also listed as an adverb, but that really refers to the combination あとで. It's used in both spatial and temporal senses, so it means "area behind (something)" or "aftermath (of some event)" respectively. あとで is from what I've seen only used in the temporal sense, i.e. "after" - but more literally, "in (= during) the aftermath".

So this could be "Now that I have eaten food, I will brush my teeth". Or a more general observation (interpreting non-past as habitual present): "After I eat food, I brush my teeth."

Improve this answer

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .