Connectors 3: before and after in German

The words bevor and vorher (‘before’) and nachdem and danach (‘after’) were among the connectors that we reviewed in the module Connectors 1. Additionally, vor can also mean ‘before’, and nachher and nach can also mean ‘after’. It is important to know that all these vor-words and nach-words cannot be used interchangeably. They are used in distinct contexts, perform distinct functions, and express slightly different meanings.

Activity 1

bevor – vorher – vor

Read corpus examples below. Pay attention to what words follow the bolded connectors, and to the position of the bolded verb.  If you find the text hard to read, you can go directly to the DWDS Corpus using the links provided below the images.

A.

B.

C.

Which rules best reflect the difference between the sentence sets (a), (b), and (c)? You may want to review what you learned about different connector types in the module Connectors 1.

Activity 2

Let’s look at some mixed example sentences with three types of connectors: preposition, subordinating conjunction, and adverb.

Choose the correct type for each bolded connector.

Activity 3

vor dem, bevor, or vorher?

Choose the word or words that best complete each sentence.

Activity 4

nachdem – nachher – danach – nach

Read corpus examples below. Pay attention to what words follow the bolded connectors, and to the position of the bolded verb.

A.

B.

C.

D.

Which rules best reflect the difference between the sentence sets (a), (b), (c), and (d)? You may want to review what you learned about different connector types in the module Connectors 1.

Activity 5

Let’s look at some mixed example sentences with three types of connectors: preposition, subordinating conjunction, and adverb.

Choose the correct type for each bolded connector.

Activity 6

nach dem, nachdem, or danach?
Choose the word or words that best complete each sentence.

Activity 7

Now summarize what you have learned in this module. Choose the correct answer.

You can read more about the vor-words and nach-words using the links provided.

Activity 8

On your own. Write 6 sentences where you use connectors mentioned in this module.

For example:

Vor dem Unterricht gehe ich zum Sport.
Nachdem der Unterricht zu Ende ist, gehe ich in die Bibliothek.
Danach mache ich meine Hausaufgaben.

Here you can read more about the usage of after and before in German.

 Nina Vyatkina