Using antes de /después de [noun/infinitive] for before/after [something/doing something]

Inma Sánchez
2021-01-10
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To express in Spanish before or after [something/doing something] we use the prepositional phrases: antes de and después de.

Antes de + noun

Voy a ducharme antes de la cena.I am going to have a shower before dinner.

Después de + noun

Después de la fiesta llamamos a un taxi.After the party we will call a taxi.

Notice in the examples above how after the preposition de the noun is preceded by its article

antes de la cena

después de la fiesta

Contraction del

Remember that if the noun is masculine you will find the contraction del:

Antes del partido bebimos demasiadas cervezas.Before the match we drank too many beers.

Antes de + infinitive

Fui a su casa antes de ir al gimnasio.I went to her house before going to the gym.

Después de + infinitive

Después de cocinar quiero ver la televisión.After cooking I want to watch TV.
Notice that in Spanish the verb after the preposition de comes in the infinitive form (-ar/-er/ir form) whilst in English it is a gerund (-ing form)

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Examples and resources

Voy a ducharme antes de la cena.I am going to have a shower before dinner.
Antes del partido bebimos demasiadas cervezas.Before the match we drank too many beers.
Después de cocinar quiero ver la televisión.After cooking I want to watch TV.
Fui a su casa antes de ir al gimnasio.I went to her house before going to the gym.
Después de la fiesta llamamos a un taxi.After the party we will call a taxi.
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