Before and Thereafter

Opposite meaning words

Before adverb - So as to precede something in order of time.

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Thereafter is an antonym for before in topics: previously, then.

Thereafter adverb - Following in time or place.

Usage example: gave his farewell speech and left the room shortly thereafter

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Before is an antonym for thereafter.

Zig-zagged in Season 6 when Jessie watches Sam being Devoured by the Horde before she dies herself, followed shortly thereafter by her other son, Ron.

Source: Outliving One's Offspring
Czeslaw was orphaned sometime before 1711, and his legal guardian thereafter was... well, not one of the best.

Source: Parental Abandonment / Anime and Manga
Though, this name is given to children who died either before birth or shortly thereafter.

Source: Names To Run Away From / Foreign Language Names

Cite this Source

Thereafter and Before. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 15, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/before/thereafter

Before & Thereafter. N.p., 2016. Web. 15 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/before/thereafter>.

Thereafter or Before. 2016. Accessed August 15, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/before/thereafter.

Google Ngram Viewer shows how "before" and "thereafter" have occurred on timeline