Grammar-Quizzes › Connectors › Connective Prepositions › After, Before, When
After, Before, When(temporal prepositions / conjunctions / adjuncts)
Relate the timing of two activities
In Context
On Saturday nights, my friend and I get together to watch a movie after he finishes work. He calls as he leaves work. I pick out some snacks before he arrives. We select a movie when he gets here. I make popcorn while he moves the sofa in front of the TV. We start the movie as soon as we finish getting ready.
We watch the whole movie as long as it is interesting. When the movie ends, we head out for a late night snack. We look for our friends once we get to our favorite spot. We all talk. We don't get home until it is late. We feel tired as the sun comes up. We have had fun by the time the day ends.
Time-Related Activities — Present and Future
| PRESENT | |
|---|---|
A time-related activity can be added to a main clause with a connective preposition¹ such as before, after, when, or while. When the verb in the main clause is present tense, the verb in the clause following the preposition reflects the same time frame—present tense. In the main clause, present tense expresses routine activity, and present progressive expresses an activity or plan already in thought or motion. |
|
| MAIN CLAUSE | CONNECTIVE PREP + CLAUSE |
| PRESENT / PRES PROG. | PRESENT VERB |
We get together on Saturdays We are getting together² |
after he finishes work. (later than) after he finishes work. |
He calls me |
as he leaves work. (at same time or immediately before) |
I pick up some snacks I am picking up some snacks |
before he arrives. (ealier than) before he arrives. |
I select a movie |
when he gets here. (at the moment or soon after) |
I make popcorn |
while he moves the sofa in front of the TV. (ongoing- same time activities) |
We start the movie |
as soon as we finish getting ready. (when–immediately following) |
We watch the whole movie |
as long as it is interesting. (while–for all the time) |
We head out for a late night snack |
when the movie ends. (immediately following) |
We look for our friends |
once we get to our favorite spot². (immediately following) |
We don't get home |
until it is late. (immediately following) |
We feel tired |
as the sun comes up. (in the last moments) |
We have fun (routinely) |
by the time the day ends. (in the time before) |
We have a good time |
whenever we get together. (always) |
We have a good time |
anytime we get together. |
| FUTURE [MODAL VERB] | |
|---|---|
A time-related activity can also be added to a main clause expressing what we think, guess, know or predict will happen at a present or future time. When the main clause includes a modal such as will, can, may, shall. the verb in the clause following the preposition remains in present tense. In the main clause, will expresses intent to do or prediction about a future activity. Be going expresses an activity or plan soon to be put in motion. |
|
| MAIN CLAUSE | CONNECTIVE PREP + CLAUSE |
| MODAL VERB WILL / BE GOING | PRESENT VERB |
We will watch a movie We are going to watch a movie |
after he finishes work. *will finish |
He will call me |
as he leaves work. |
I will pick up some snacks (intention) |
before he arrives. |
I am going to select a movie |
when he gets here. |
We will be making popcorn |
while he is moving the sofa in front of the TV. (ongoing- same time activities) |
We can/ will start the movie |
as soon as we finish getting ready. |
We will watch the movie |
as long as it is interesting. |
We will head out for a late night snack |
when the movie ends. |
We will look for our friends |
once we get to our favorite spot. |
We won't get home |
until it is late. |
We will feel tired |
as the sun comes up. |
We will have had³ a good time (future prediction) |
by the time the day ends. (See future perfect.) |
We will have a good time |
whenever we get together. |
We will have a good time |
anytime we get together. |
*not used / ~questionable usage
¹ conjuction vs. preposition – In linguistic, scientific, and mathematic descriptions, the word conjunction expresses AND, a Boolean term which means "the union or overlap of the two fields. X ∧Y". See "And, But…not, Or". Adjunct preposition or connective preposition is the term for a word that joins additional, extra (adjunct) information before or after the clause. See Connective Prepositions.
² present tense vs. present progressive tense– "We get together" expresses habit or custom. "We are getting together" expresses a plan that is about to happen. See Present Tense | Present Pogressive Tense.
favorite spot (expression) – a preferred restaurant, café, bar, plaza or other place where people can meet up.
head out (V) – set out or go in a particular direction
connective prepositions – before, after, when, while (also called adverbial prepositions or temporal adjuncts.) See Grammar Notes.
conjunction – is a term reserved for the addition (and) of two elements. See Conjunction, exclusion, disjunction.
Also see When vs. While | After and Before –ing | Time-Relative Events | Will vs. Be going to | By the time | Will / Will have
(Azar 17-2) (Huddelston 8 §6.3) (Murphy 25A, 60B 119, ) (Swan 30, 98)
Before, After, When, While with Other Complements
Express minimal information with shortened clauses
Before/After Followed by Other Complements¹
| BEFORE / AFTER + OTHER COMPLEMENTS | |
|---|---|
Before and after can be followed by shorter elements and structures. If shortened, the missing information has to be guessed from context. The subject must refer to the same person in both clauses/parts. Before and after express a sequence of actions. The actions in the main clause and the sequence clause are often nonprogressive, of shorter duration. Before and after can be complemented (followed) by [1] a clause, [2] a gerund (-ing), [3] a noun phrase, [4] a participle, or [5] nothing (a comma). |
|
| SEQUENCE FOCUS | OTHER ACTIVITY |
| PREP + CLAUSE | MAIN CLAUSE |
Before he called, After he called, Once he called, When he called, (immed. after)² |
we started the movie.
(The verb expresses an activitiy of shorter duration, instantaneous, or detail activity.) |
| PREP + GERUND | MAIN CLAUSE |
Before calling, After calling, The subject (the person) and predicate (verb) are understood from context. |
he picked up some snacks. he was picking up some snacks. The subject is understood as being the same subject as the main clause. |
| PREP + PARTICIPLE | MAIN CLAUSE |
Before expected, After introduced, |
he arrived at our door. he came in and sat down. |
| PREP + NOUN / NOUN PHRASE | MAIN CLAUSE |
Before his call, After his call, |
he picked up some snacks. |
| PREP + PREP PHRASE | MAIN CLAUSE |
— |
— |
| PREP / CONNECTIVE ADVERB | MAIN CLAUSE |
Before, After, |
he picked up some snacks.
Afterward, he picked up snacks.Before that, he picked up snacks. |
| AFTER + OTHER COMPLEMENTS | |
|---|---|
When and while can be followed by shorter elements and structures. If shortened, the missing information has to be guessed from context. The subject must refer to the same person in both clauses/parts. When and while relate a second action occurring synchronously (same time). When includes a shorter interrupting action. While includes an action of longer duration. The verb may be progressive or non progressive. (When/While) When and while can be complemented (followed) by [1] a clause, [2] a gerund (-ing), [3] a participle, [4] a prepositional phrase. |
|
| FOCUS ACTIVITY | BACKGROUND ACTIVITY |
| PREP + CLAUSE | MAIN CLAUSE |
When he called you, (interrupting) While he was calling, (same-time) |
we were watching a movie. we were watching a movie. (The verb expresses an activitiy with longer duration, requiring time to complete a process or project.) |
| PREP + GERUND | MAIN CLAUSE |
When calling you, While talking with you, The subject (the person) and predicate (verb) are understood from context. |
he was watching a movie. he was watching/watched a movie. The subject (the person) and predicate (verb) are understood from context. |
| PREP + ADJECTIVE / PARTICIPLE | MAIN CLAUSE |
When done, While awake, (awakened, alert, ready, alone, relaxed) |
he watched the movie. he was watching the movie. (Then he fell asleep and missed the rest.) |
| PREP + NOUN / NOUN PHRASE | MAIN CLAUSE |
— |
— |
| PREP + PREP PHRASE | MAIN CLAUSE |
When in doubt, While in conversation with you |
he asked us what had happened in the TV series. he was missing all that was happening. |
| PREP / CONNECTIVE ADVERB | MAIN CLAUSE |
— |
— |
¹ complement — a word or structure that is required to complete the meaning expressed by another element or structure in the clause; for example, He fell __. ("down" is expected in order to complete the meaning).
² When – two meanings – (1) same time, (2) immediately after
Also see While / When -ing | Prepositional Complements | Participial Adjectives -ed | Verbs of Short or Long Duration | When / While
(Azar 17-2) (Huddelston 8 §6.3) (Murphy 25A, 60B 119, ) (Swan 30, 98)
Punctuation
Placing after and before at the beginning of a clause
Clause Position
| INITIAL POSITION / FRONTED PHRASE |
|---|
|
| FRONTED PHRASE— COMMA |
As soon as you get here, we'll leave. |
Before I drink coffee, my head hurts. |
After I drink coffee, my headache stops. |
When you give me the keys, I'll start driving. |
A connective prepositional phrase can be moved in front of the main clause for emphasis. A comma is placed after it.| FINAL POSITION |
|---|
|
| PHRASE IN NORMAL POSITION — NO COMMA |
We'll leave as soon as you get here. |
My head hurts before I drink coffee. |
My headache stops after I drink coffee. |
I'll start driving when you give me the keys. |
Adjunct – add on structure; the connective preposition adds a clause that is not required by the main clause to make sense.
Prepositional Phrase = [Preposition + Clause] See Prep Complements.
Common Mistakes
Errors and Solutions
Error and Solution
| ERROR |
|---|
*I'll make some popcorn. After we'll eat it |
*I'll call you before I will get there. |
*I'll lock the door before I leave. |
| SOLUTION |
|---|
I'll make some popcorn. Afterward, we'll eat it. I'll make some popcorn. After that, we'll eat it. After I make popcorn, we'll eat it. |
I'll call you before I get there. Use present tense in the adverb clause. |
I'll lock the door after I leave. (After is followed by a clauses with the second activity.) |
Also see Time-Relative Events (present tense), If vs. When, When vs. While and Awhile v. A while (N - Adv [P])
Grammar Notes (Advanced)
Traditional and Linguistic Descriptions
Traditional and Linguistic Descriptions
| TRADITIONAL GRAMMAR |
|---|
In traditional grammar, while, when, before, after, and since are conjunctions which join an adverb clause to an independent clause. The term adverbial clause is used because the clause adds time-related information about the verb and answers the question When? This added-on structure is called a dependent clause because it can not stand alone as a sentence. Azar & Hagen call these structures adverbial clauses or "time clauses" with no mention of a term for the connector. It is not clear whether while, when, before, after, and since are adverbs or conjunctions. "A time clause begins with such words as when, before after, as soon as, until, and while and includes a subjects and a verb. The time clause can come either at the beginning of the sentence or in the second part of the sentence…" (Azar 4-3, Adverb clauses 17-2; Reduction 18-1) after, because, though, if — adverb clauses (Azar 17.3-11) while, before, after, as soon as, until (Murphy 25A-C) Includes examples but no descriptive grammar terms. |
conjuction vs. preposition – In scientific, mathematic and linguistic descriptions, the word conjunction expresses AND, a Boolean term which means "the union or overlap of the two fields. X ∧Y". See "And, But…not, Or". Adjunct preposition or connective preposition is the term for a word that joins additional, extra (adjunct) information before or after the clause. See Connective Prepositions. |
| PARSED / LINEAR DIAGRAM |
|
| LINGUISTIC DESCRIPTIONS |
|---|
In current linguistic analysis – while, when, before, after, and since — are prepositions which take a clause as their complement: a finite clause (while we were walking home) or a nonfinite gerund-participle clause (while walking home). Before and after additionally take a noun complement (before me). The structure is called an adjunct because it is not required to complete the meaning of the sentence. (The clause can be considered complete without the prepositional phrase.) |
Huddleston & Pullum (2009) use the term "temporal location expressions". In their grammar description, they reassign a large number of items previously analyzed as adverbs after, as, as soon as, before, once, since while, and when to the category of Prepositions. The preposition is the head of the prepositional phrase (PP) which can be complemented by a noun phrase or a clause (with a subject and a verb, or a clause with a gerund-participle). (7.2.4, 8.63) |
Swan (2009) refers to while, when, before, after, and since as conjunctions. (29.1, 30.1, 73, 97, 411.6, 510) after, before, since, when, while |
| TREE DIAGRAM |
 |
Word Categories: N – Noun; V – Verb; Aux – Auxiliary; Adj – Adjective; Adv – Adverb; P –Preposition; Det –Determiner.
Phrasal Categories: NP – Noun Phrase; VP – Verb Phrase; AdjP – Adjective Phrase; AdvP – Adverb Phrase; PP – Prepositional Phrase; DP – Determinative Phrase.
Clausal Categories: Cls – clause; F – finite clause; NF – nonfinite clause (Ger – gerund; Inf – infinitive; PPart – past participle).
Word Functions: Subj – subject; Pred – predicate/predicator; Comp – complement: elements required by an expression to complete its meaning (DO – direct object; IO – indirect object); Adjunct – adjunct: elements not required by an expression to complete its meaning (Subord – subordinator; Coord – coordinator); Supl – supplement: a clause or phrase added onto a clause that is not closely related to the central thought or structure of the main clause.
Works Cited
- Azar, Betty Schrampfer, and Stacy A. Hagen. Understanding and Using English Grammar. 4th ed., Pearson Education, 2009.
- Biber, Douglas, and Stig Johansson, et al. Longman Grammar Of Spoken And Written English. Pearson Education, 1999.
- Huddleston, Rodney D., and Geoffrey K. Pullum. The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language. Cambridge UP, 2002.
- Murphy, Raymond. English Grammar in Use. 5th ed., Cambridge UP. 2019.
- Swan, Michael. Practical English Usage. 3rd ed., Oxford UP, 2005.
Practice 1
Waiting for an Acceptance Letter
Correct or incorrect? (future tense)
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Practice 2
Four Years Overseas
Complete the sentence. (past, present, and future tense)
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Practice 3
A Changed Opinion
Read for Errors
Before Elena traveled to New York, she was hearing a lot of awful things about New York city. However, she was pleasantly surprised once she had arrived. She saw a delightful mixture of people when she had walked around the area where her school was located. As long as she didn't went out alone at night, she felt safe. It was not much different from her own city of Athens. Friends told her greatly exaggerated stories before she had left Athens.
She had been fearful until she had seen it for herself. Elena enjoyed going to the neighborhood's cafés and book stores while she got her bachelor's degree. She sipped coffee as she studied. When ever she and her friends went out at night, they all walked home together. She held a completely different opinion of New York City by the time she has finished her studies.
awful (Adj) — unpleasant, bad
bachelor's degree (N) — a certificate of completion for four years of college of university study
exaggerate (V) — describe as better, worse or larger than something really is
fearful (Adj) — afraid; a preoccupation of danger
mixture (N) — combination; a mix of different things
neighborhood (N) — the area or region around or near some place or thing; vicinity
opinion (N) — personal view, attitude, judgment
pleasantly (adv.) — pleasing, agreeable, enjoyable
Edit for Errors
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