after-hours

American

[af-ter-ouuhrz, -ou-erz, ahf-] / ˈæf tərˈaʊərz, -ˈaʊ ərz, ˈɑf- /

adjective

occurring, engaged in, or operating after the normal or legal closing time for business.

an after-hours drinking club.

after hours Idioms

After normal working hours, after closing time; also, after legal or established opening hours. For example, I haven't time while the shop is open, but I can see you after hours, or The restaurant employees sometimes stayed for a meal after hours. This term originally referred to laws governing business hours. It also gave rise to the term after-hours club, for a drinking club that remained open later than similar establishments. [Mid-1800s]

Usage

What does after-hours mean? After-hours describes something that happens after normal or legal hours of operation for a business or service, as in The after-hours party starts as soon as the bar closes for the night.After-hours can describe something that happens after its normal time, such as a business meeting that takes place after the close of the business day. In the US, many business offices close at 5 pm. A meeting that took place at 7 pm, for example, would be an after-hours meeting.After-hours can also describe something that happens after the allotted time. It’s generally used in situations in which something can be conducted after a business or program has ended and will still be honored. This use is most often used in reference to the stock market and investing, such as in the phrase after-hours trading. The New York Stock Exchange, for example, is only open from 9:30 am to 4 pm, but trading can be conducted at any time of the day.Finally, after-hours can simply describe something that happens late at night. You might find a restaurant that serves an after-hours breakfast, meaning they serve breakfast foods late at night, especially after midnight.Example: Joanie tried after-hours trading but found that she made more money during regular trading hours.

Etymology

Origin of after-hours

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Oracle’s stock turned higher in after-hours trading on Thursday, after Bloomberg reported that TikTok had signed on as a customer for Oracle’s cloud services.

From MarketWatch

FedEx late Thursday touted “outstanding” quarterly earnings and tweaked its outlook for the year, sending the stock higher in the after-hours session.

From MarketWatch

Although the company topped earnings and revenue expectations, the stock ticked lower in after-hours trading Thursday, reflecting investors’ disappointment over declining profits and lackluster sales in China.

From Barron's

A bright spot was memory-chip maker Micron Technology, whose shares gained in after-hours trading after it hiked its growth forecasts.

From The Wall Street Journal

That explains why a stock that has already more than doubled in the past year rose another 8% in after-hours trading Wednesday.

From The Wall Street Journal

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023