Afterward and Afterwards are both adverbs that mean “later,” and differ only in spelling; they are equally acceptable, although one is more popular than the other in various countries.
They can only be used as sentence-level adverbs, not directly on verbs. Here's an example to illustrate:
Correct: Afterward(s), we ate ice-cream.
Incorrect: We afterward(s) ate ice cream.
Although they are equally acceptable, afterward is more common among Americans and Canadians, while afterwards is more popular with people in the UK and other English speaking nations.
How to Use "Afterward" and "Afterwards" in a Sentence
Afterward and Afterwards are frequently used in English writing—useful if you are writing about something that happened after an event, or about someone's action following a previous action or event. Here are some example sentences:
- I studied for my exam for hours, but afterward I found out that the exam was cancelled.
- Afterwards, she got engaged to her long-term partner
- I was feeling really good afterwards.
- He looked at me and said afterwards, "thanks for the help."
- I will tell you the truth afterward.
- Afterward, he returned home.
- Afterwards, we will discuss it.
- Afterwards, when I went outside, the rain had stopped.
- Afterwards, I will have my assistant book you onto a flight
- We talked afterwards, but we didn't come to an agreement.