Practice JLPTHow to tell them apart
あとで treats the first action as a completed event and then places the second action somewhere after it, so it works even when the two are not back-to-back (日本へ行ったあとで病気になった). てから chains actions in order and stresses that the second thing happens once the first is done, often as an immediate next step or an ongoing state since that point (シャワーを浴びてから寝る). Swapping them sounds off when you need the gap or the since sense.
- あとで Use あとで when the second event simply happens sometime after the first, not necessarily right away.
- てから Use てから when the second action follows directly after finishing the first or marks a point something has continued since.
| Grammar point | Meaning | JLPT level |
|---|---|---|
| あとで atode | After | N4 |
| てから tekara | After doing | N5 |
あとで atode
After
After | Some state or action takes place at a time (not always immediately) after another state or action has taken place.
-
ご飯を食べたあと（で）すぐ勉強しました。
I studied right after I had eaten my meal.
-
メイソンさんは日本へ行ったあとで病気になった・なりました。
Mr. Mason became ill after he went to Japan.
てから tekara
After doing
After; having done something; since (time) | After/since a point in time at which something takes place.
-
ジョーンズさんはいつもシャワーを浴びてから寝ます。
Mr. Jones always goes to bed after taking a shower.
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二年前に交通事故を起こしてから、ミラーさんは車に乗らないようにしています。
Since he caused a traffic accident two years ago, Mr. Miller has been trying not to drive a car.
あとで and てから are JLPT N5–N4 grammar points that Japanese learners often mix up. This page compares them side by side — meanings, usage and example sentences — so you can tell them apart.