áður en / eftir að

Before and After Clauses

Level 3

áður en = before, eftir að = after: Þvoðu þér um hendurnar áður en þú borðar (Wash your hands before you eat).

How It Works

áður en (before). Always followed by a subject and a verb:

  • Þvoðu þér um hendurnar áður en þú borðar. (Wash your hands before you eat.)
  • Ég bjó í Póllandi áður en ég flutti til Íslands. (I lived in Poland before I moved to Iceland.)

The verb is normally in the indicative. In writing you will also meet the past subjunctive, especially in reported speech: Hún sagðist ætla að hringja áður en hún kæmi (She said she would call before she came).

eftir að (after). Also takes a subject and a verb: Eftir að hún kom heim fór hún að sofa. With the same subject, you can also use eftir að hafa + supine: Eftir að hafa borðað fórum við í göngutúr (After eating, we went for a walk). Before a plain noun, use eftir alone: eftir matinn (after dinner).

Word order. A fronted time clause fills the first place, just like a fronted þegar-clause:

  • Áður en ég fer ætla ég að kveðja. (Before I go, I'm going to say goodbye.)
  • Eftir að hún kom heim fór hún að sofa.

Related words. þangað til/á meðan give until and while, and síðan means since or afterwards.

Examples (5)

  1. Þvoðu þér um hendurnar áður en þú borðar.

    Wash your hands before you eat.

    Word by Word: Wash yourself about the hands before than you eat.

  2. Eftir að hún kom heim fór hún að sofa.

    After she got home, she went to sleep.

    Word by Word: After that she came home went she to sleep.

    The clause comes first, so the main clause starts with fór.

  3. Ég bjó í Póllandi áður en ég flutti til Íslands.

    I lived in Poland before I moved to Iceland.

    Word by Word: I lived in Poland before than I moved to Iceland.

  4. Hringdu í mig áður en þú leggur af stað.

    Call me before you set off.

    Word by Word: Ring in me before than you lay off place.

  5. Eftir að hafa borðað fórum við í göngutúr.

    After eating, we went for a walk.

    Word by Word: After to have eaten went we in walk-tour.

    eftir að hafa + supine works when both parts have the same subject.

Common Mistakes

  • Leaving out the subject after áður en.

    Þvoðu þér um hendurnar áður en borða.
    Þvoðu þér um hendurnar áður en þú borðar.

    áður en needs a whole clause with a subject and a verb: áður en þú borðar.

  • Keeping the subject first after a fronted time clause.

    Eftir að hún kom heim hún fór að sofa.
    Eftir að hún kom heim fór hún að sofa.

    The time clause takes the first place, so the main clause starts with its verb: fór hún.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

áður en / eftir aðLevel 3Before and After Clauses

Learn This First

Before and after clauses build on þegar and eftir.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

áður enáðureftirað