How to use 后来
⋯⋯ ，后来 ⋯⋯
后来 moves a past narrative forward to a later stage. First establish an earlier situation, then use 后来 to explain how things developed. It is useful for changes of mind, relationships, jobs, and other stories in which the later outcome differs from the beginning. The two stages need not happen close together.
Place 后来 at the beginning of the later clause, or before its predicate when the subject continues. It can also refer back to an earlier event already mentioned in the conversation. For an ordinary future plan, use an expression such as 以后 or 之后 instead. 后来 presents the later stage from a retrospective storytelling viewpoint.
Examples with pinyin and English
他说他会来， 后来又说不来了。
He said he would come, but later he said that he's not coming.
他们上周吵架了， 后来和好了。
They had a fight last week, and they made up afterwards.
他以前是厨师， 后来当了老板。
He used to be a chef. Afterwards, he became the owner.
我昨晚走得早，不知道后来发生了什么。
I left early yesterday evening, so I don't know what happened afterwards.
What to remember
- Establish an earlier stage first.
- Use 后来 for retrospective sequencing.
- It does not mean immediately afterward.
Practise the pattern
Practise this topic with the app’s grammar exercises. Your answers and review dates are saved separately from vocabulary practice.
Practise this grammar topic ↗Look up the grammar words
Source and editorial notes
Explanation rewritten for Laowai. Examples are adapted from the Laowai English grammar curriculum, with editorial corrections where needed. The original curriculum credits AllSet Learning’s Chinese Grammar Wiki as used with permission. Read the retained source credits.
Difficulty labels describe the level of the explanation; they are not official HSK placement. Send a correction with this page’s URL.