afternoon

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable or uncountable

   The period of the day from noon until the evening.

   Grammar: Can be used with 'the' or 'an' when referring to a specific afternoon, or without an article when referring to the time of day in general.

   Patterns

   • in the afternoon
   • this afternoon
   • on Monday afternoon

   We usually go for a walk in the afternoon.

   The meeting is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon.

   She spent the afternoon reading in the garden.

2. 2nouncountable

   A particular afternoon, especially one when something happens.

   Grammar: Use 'an' or 'the' before it when it refers to a specific afternoon.

   Patterns

   • a lovely afternoon
   • spend an afternoon
   • have a good afternoon

   We had a lovely afternoon at the beach.

   I'll never forget that afternoon.

   It was a hot afternoon in July.

Word forms

Common combinations

good afternoon

Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for coming.

in the afternoon

I have a dentist appointment in the afternoon.

this afternoon

Can we meet this afternoon?

late afternoon

The light is beautiful in the late afternoon.

afternoon tea

They serve afternoon tea at the hotel.

afternoon nap

He takes a short afternoon nap every day.

Synonyms and how they differ

midday

Midday refers specifically to twelve o'clock, while afternoon covers the whole period after noon.

evening

Evening is the later part of the day, after the afternoon, often starting around six o'clock.

Opposites

Word family

afternoons adverb

Means regularly in the afternoon, e.g., 'She works afternoons.'

Commonly confused: afternoon or evening?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “afternoon”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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