efter att
After
Efter att means after and locates the main situation later than the reference event. It can refer to past events, routines or future plans.
How It Works
Efter att links situations in time: the main situation is later than the event or relevant boundary identified by the efter att clause. It is not restricted to the past.
It introduces a subordinate clause (bisats), which describes the first event. The main clause (huvudsats) describes the second event.
Structure:
You can structure the sentence in two main ways:
1. Main Clause + efter att + Subordinate Clause
- Jag lagade mat efter att jag kom hem. (I cooked food after I came home.)
2. Efter att + Subordinate Clause, + Main Clause (with V2 inversion)
- Efter att jag kom hem, lagade jag mat. (After I came home, I cooked food.)
Optional 'att'
In spoken and informal Swedish, it's very common to drop 'att' and just use 'efter'. Both are correct, but 'efter att' is slightly more formal and can be clearer.
- Vi gick på bio efter vi hade ätit. (We went to the cinema after we had eaten.)
Word Order
Remember that the clause starting with 'efter att' is a subordinate clause, so it follows the BIFF rule. This means that sentence adverbs (like inte, alltid, kanske) come before the finite verb.
- Han blev glad efter att han äntligen hade hittat sina nycklar. (He became happy after he finally had found his keys.)
For a future plan, Jag ringer efter att mötet har slutat means I will call after the meeting has ended. A perfect form can locate the meeting’s end before that future call. With an infinitive, use efter att ha ätit (after having eaten); in Jag diskade efter att ha ätit, the understood eater is jag.
Examples (5)
- Jag gick hem efter att filmen slutade.
I went home after the movie ended.
Word by Word: I went home after that the movie ended.
- Efter att vi hade ätit, diskade jag.
After we had eaten, I did the dishes.
Word by Word: After that we had eaten, did-the-dishes I.
- Hon började studera svenska efter att hon flyttat till Sverige.
She started studying Swedish after she moved to Sweden.
Word by Word: She began studying Swedish after that she (had) moved to Sweden.
Flyttat is supine: hade is understood and may be omitted in this subordinate clause. The full form is efter att hon hade flyttat.
- Vi tog en fika efter (att) vi hade handlat.
We had a fika after we had done the shopping.
Word by Word: We took a fika after (that) we had shopped.
The shorter efter-clause occurs, particularly in speech. Efter att and efter det att are useful explicit alternatives; efter det can also introduce a temporal clause.
- Barnen var trötta efter att de hade lekt ute hela dagen.
The children were tired after they had played outside all day.
Word by Word: The children were tired after that they had played outside whole the day.
Common Mistakes
Forgetting the subordinate clause word order (BIFF rule).
Hon kom till jobbet efter att hon hade inte ätit frukost.Hon kom till jobbet efter att hon inte hade ätit frukost.In a subordinate clause starting with 'efter att', sentence adverbs like 'inte' (not) must come before the first verb. This is known as the BIFF rule.
Using a past-tense form after hade.
Vi åkte hem efter att festen hade slutade.Vi åkte hem efter att festen hade slutat.Hade takes the supine slutat. Sedan can also introduce a correct after-clause: Vi åkte hem sedan festen var slut. It must not be marked ungrammatical merely because efter att is another possible wording.
How It Connects
Learn This First
To understand 'efter att', you first need to know the basic preposition 'efter' (after) and how subordinate clauses are structured in Swedish, specifically how 'att' functions as a subordinator that affects word order.
- efterAfter
The word 'efter' is the core temporal component of this conjunction, and understanding its use as a preposition is fundamental.
Level 1 - That-clause structure
The pattern 'efter att' introduces a subordinate clause, which requires knowledge of how word order changes in dependent clauses.
Level 2 - Tense concepts
Using 'efter att' requires an understanding of the sequence of events and how to use different tenses to describe actions happening one after another.
Foundations
Related Patterns
- innanBefore
This is the direct opposite of 'efter att', meaning 'before'. Both are subjunctions that introduce subordinate clauses about time.
Level 2 - när (subjunktion)When
När places something at the time of an event or situation; context can also give a sequence or trigger reading. Efter att explicitly places the main situation later. När is not limited to simultaneous ongoing actions.
Level 2 - Subordinate clause word order
This is the rule for word order in subordinate clauses. Since 'efter att' introduces a subordinate clause, understanding the BIFF rule is essential for correct sentence structure.
Level 3 - hade + SupinePluperfect Tense
The pluperfect tense ('hade' + supinum) is often used in the 'efter att' clause to emphasize that its action was fully completed before the main clause action began.
Level 2 - för attIn Order to
'För att' ('in order to') is another common subjunction that introduces a subordinate clause, but it expresses purpose rather than time. Comparing them helps clarify the different functions of subjunctions.
Level 2
Words in This Pattern
Practice efter att in Bubblegum
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