subsequent

American  

[suhb-si-kwuhnt] / ˈsʌb sɪ kwənt /

adjective

1. occurring or coming later or after (often followed byto ).

   subsequent events;

   Subsequent to their arrival in Chicago, they bought a new car.

2. following in order or succession; succeeding.

   a subsequent section in a treaty.

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subsequent British  

/ ˈsʌbsɪkwənt /

adjective

1. occurring after; succeeding

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Other Word Forms

• subsequently
  adverb
• subsequentness
  noun

Etymology

Origin of subsequent

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English, from Latin subsequent-, stem of subsequēns “following close behind,” present participle of subsequī “to follow close behind,” equivalent to sub- sub- + sequ(ī) “to follow”

Explanation

For something that comes after something else in time or order, choose the adjective subsequent. If the entire class fails an exam, the teacher will hopefully make subsequent ones a little easier. Subsequent comes from the Latin subsequi "to follow closely" and means just that - following or coming after. If you say, "in 1990 and subsequent years," it includes 1990, whereas "the years subsequent to 1990" do not include it. When you mention a car crash and subsequent traffic jam or a scandal and subsequent investigation, one follows the other in order but a cause and effect relationship is implied too.

Example Sentences

In subsequent years, Baron searched for small companies he could hold for a decade or longer, and for executives he could bet on, such as Jay Pritzker, Hyatt Hotels’s co-founder.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 27, 2026

"We hypothesize that certain species with poorer general population health, specifically rattlesnakes with historic and current increased risks of human persecution, are likely more susceptible to infection with subsequent disease," said Mishin.

From Science Daily • May 26, 2026

A doji candle followed by a bearish shooting-star on Feb. 12 and on Feb. 18 confirmed the loss of momentum and triggered the subsequent pullback.

From Barron's • May 26, 2026

The idea runs back at least to the influential 18th-century English jurist William Blackstone, who instructed that “Acts of parliament derogatory from the power of subsequent parliaments bind not.”

From Slate • May 26, 2026

But three subsequent United States Supreme Court decisions had put strict limits on the sentences that juveniles can receive, eliminating death sentences and many sentences of life without the possibility of parole, sometimes called LWOP.

From "The 57 Bus" by Dashka Slater

Related Words

• consecutive
• consequent
• ensuing
• following
• successive