after all

1. Despite everything, nevertheless, as in The plane took off half an hour late but landed on time after all .

2. After everything else has been considered, ultimately, as in Mary has final approval of the guest list; after all, it's her wedding . The two usages are pronounced differently, the first giving stress to the word after and the second to the word all . Both date from the early 1700s. Also see when all is said and done .

Example Sentences

She’s the one tied to a chair, after all.

Read more on Salon

It’s still possible that it contains mainly long positions — after all the end of the third quarter was a month ago.

Read more on MarketWatch

It is in our imagination, after all, that our long-desired futures appear: marriage to a man with whom one has only had one date; happiness and success in a job one may never hold.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The retired attorney considers herself fortunate — she has a house to live in, after all.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

But the latest results—and the reaction in after-hours trading Wednesday—show the blank check investors have written to the Facebook parent might have an expiration date after all.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• already 
• belatedly 
• eventually 
• someday 
• sooner or later 
• subsequently 
• ultimately