Subsequent: Definition, Usage & Examples

Meaning 1：following after (subsequent)

subsequent 🔊

/ˈsʌbsɪkwənt/

adj.

Happening or coming after something else in time.

Subsequent meaning illustrated by a calendar showing one day followed by a meeting on the next.

following after 🔊

➕

/ˈfɒləʊɪŋ ˈɑːftə/

adj.

Describes something that happens or comes after something else in time or order.

📁 Category：Time & Dates 🔖 Level：Intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From Latin 'sub-' (after) + 'sequi' (to follow) + '-ent' (adjective suffix). Literally 'following after'.

💡 Mnemonic

Think of 'SUB' (like 'subway' that comes after the main road) + 'SEQUENT' (like 'sequence', an order). So, it's something in the sequence that comes after.

📖 Example

Her first video went viral, and subsequent posts also received a lot of attention. 🔊 Her initial video spread widely online, and the posts that came after it also got significant attention.

🔗 Collocations

subsequent to – happening after a particular event or time

subsequent events – events that happened afterwards

subsequent generations – the generations that followed

🔄 Synonyms

following (adj.) – Coming after or as a result of.

later (adj.) – Happening at a time in the future; more recent.

succeeding (adj.) – Coming after something else in a sequence.

🚫 Antonyms

previous (adj.) – Existing or occurring before in time or order.

prior (adj.) – Existing or coming before in time, order, or importance.

antecedent (adj.) – Preceding in time or order; prior.

🌱 Derivatives

subsequently (adv.) – After a particular thing has happened; afterwards.

subsequence (n.) – The state of being subsequent; a subsequent event.

📖 Cultural Story

Derived from Latin 'subsequi', meaning 'to follow close after'. This word entered English in the late Middle English period via Anglo-Norman French. It is commonly used in legal, historical, and formal writing to denote events or periods that come later in a timeline.