afterthought

«afterthought» in Mova's school dictionary: Something that you think of, say or add later, after the… — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples.

part of speech

noun (an afterthought, afterthoughts)

meaning for a pupil

1) Something that you think of, say or add later, after the main thing is done. tree →

2) Something added without much care, treated as less important. tree →

sense in the lessons

Used in stories and writing lessons: a sentence added as an afterthought comes at the end. It tells the reader that something was not planned. In everyday talk it can be a little unkind: "the little room was an afterthought". Phrases: as an afterthought, an afterthought to, no afterthought.

examples

• As an afterthought, she grabbed her umbrella. tree →
• He added a P.S. to the letter as an afterthought. tree →
• The garden seemed like an afterthought to the builders. tree →
• "And bring a snack," Mum said as an afterthought. tree →
• Safety should never be an afterthought. tree →
• The last line of the poem was an afterthought. tree →
• The small extra room was built as an afterthought. tree →

note

Countable: afterthoughts. Written as one word. Often in the phrase "as an afterthought". Do not confuse with "second thoughts" (changing your mind).

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «afterthought» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.