after all

adverb

1

: in spite of considerations or expectations to the contrary : nevertheless

decided to take the train after all

didn't rain after all

2

: in view of all circumstances

… literature which is after all only a special department of reading.

—W. W. Watt

Examples of after all in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Doing so has simply become too difficult—this is the third Lichtenstein retrospective staged in the US in the past 35 years, after all. — Alex Greenberger, ARTnews.com, 7 Oct. 2026

To be able to share this part of the story with our fans after all these years is so special. — Jem Aswad, Variety, 7 Oct. 2026

Then comes the fatigue — and the question of whether, after all the protests, all the public recountings of harm, anything is better. — Zoe Sottile, CNN Money, 7 Oct. 2026

This is the man who made the two-and-a-half-hour, stream-of-consciousness passion project Bardo (2022), after all, which several critics also found rather abrasive and self-indulgent. — Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 7 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1590, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for after all

• aerosol
• alcohol
• arbitral
• basketball
• butanol
• cannonball
• carbinol
• cortisol
• ethanol
• fireball
• gasohol
• gossypol

Kids Definition

after all

adverb

: in spite of what was indicated or expected

decided to go after all

it rained after all