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Ago vs. Before vs. In vs. After vs. Later

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Common mistakes:

  1. (NG) I am going to Paris two weeks later.
    1. (OK) I am going to Paris in two weeks.
  2. (NG) We went to Paris two weeks before.
    1. (OK) We went to Paris two weeks ago.

 Grammar words and phrases in context

I travel a lot for business. A month ago I was in Boston, and a week before that I was in Montreal. Canada is nice. I’m planning to go back there in two weeks for a meeting and then two days later I have to go to Miami. After that, I don’t have any travel plans until next year.

Ago

We use ago to talk about a point in past time that is related to now. In other words, ago relates to the present moment in time.

  1. Tom came here two years ago. (It means, Tom came here two years before now.)
  2. Five years ago, I went to Mexico City.
  3. I saw Brad a week ago in a deli.

 Before

We use before to talk about a point in past or future time that is related to another point in time, but not now. We often use before that, to indicate the time we are referring to. Before does not relate to now.

  1. Tom came here two years ago. Before that, he had never been to the USA. (This means Tom came here two years ago. Before that or before two years ago, he had never been to the USA.)
  2. In June I’m going to Cancun. Before that, I need to renew my passport.
  3. I saw Brad a week ago in a deli. Before that, I saw him in a supermarket in New Jersey.

Ago relates to now, but before relates to another point in time, not now.

In

We use in to talk about a point in future time that is related to now.

  1. I’ll be finished with work in an hour. (“In an hour” means one hour from now.)
  2. In three weeks, my friend is coming to New York.
  3. I’m going to Cancun in two months.

After

We use after to talk about a point in past or future time that is related to another point in time, but not now. Like before, we often use after that to indicate the time we’re referring to. Keep in mind, after does not relate to now.

  1. I saw Brad a week ago in a deli. After that, we went to a café and had coffee. (It means, first, one week ago, I met Brad in the deli. After I met him, we went to a café and had coffee.)
  2. In June, I am going to Cancun. After I come back, I will start planning my next trip.
  3. After I finish work, I’m going to go straight home.

We also use later to talk about a point in past or future time that is related to another point in time, but not now. We usually put a time period before later. You can say things like a week later, two days later, a month later, and so on.

  1. I saw Brad a week ago in a deli. Two days later, we went to a café and had coffee.
  2. In June, I went to Cancun. A week later I was in Brazil.
  3. I got home at 9pm last night and an hour later I was asleep.

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