TIME LINKERS

Words and phrases that indicate time help our listeners to understand exactly ​when things
happened, happen, or will happen in our life! They also help us to keep our speech
organized as we’re trying to communicate.

They’re absolutely necessary, and we use them all the time when we’re talking!

If you’re a beginner, this guide to time linkers is a great place to start.

 
COMMON TIME LINKERS IN DAILY SPEECH 
These  are  some  of  our  most  common  time  linkers.  It’s  very  important  to  note  the 
sentence placement of these particular time linkers.  
With  these  time  linkers,  you  can  either  ​start  the  sentence  with  your  time  linker  or 
end  the  sentence  with  your  time  linker.  You  should not put these time linkers in the 
middle of your sentence.  
People  will  understand  you,  but  it  sounds  funny!  For  example,  it’s  correct  to  say: 
Next  week,  I’m  going  to  Valdivia.  OR  I’m  going  to  Valdivia  next  week.  ​NOT:  I’m 
going  next  week  to  Valdivia.  This  is  a  very  common  mistake.  Luckily,  it’s  easy  to  fix 
with practice!  
Let’s look at some examples. 
 

Next ​- used to indicate that something will happen in the day, week, year, etc. 
following the time you’re in 

● The deadline for our big project is next Friday. 

● Next year, the company is launching a new marketing strategy for the 
product. 
● Their anniversary is next month. 
● Next time you give a presentation, be sure to speak more slowly. 
● Do you want to go skiing with me next week? 
 
COMMON TIME LINKERS IN THE PAST TENSE 
These  are  some  of  the  most  common  time  linkers  used  to  recount  what  happened 
in  the  past  tense.  You’ll  need  these  linkers  when  you  want  to  tell  a  story!  The 
example sentences below form a paragraph. Read them all linked together below. 
First​ - indicates the start, the initial step 
First, we woke up early.  
Then​ - indicates the next step 
Then, we drank coffee and ate breakfast. 
Next ​- indicates what happens immediately after 
Next, we drove our car to the National Park.  
After​ - indicates what’s following in time 
After, we found where our hiking trail begins. 
After that ​- indicates what’s following an already stated event, implied by​ that 
We found a spot in the busy parking lot. After that, we prepared to start our hike. 
Before​ - indicates what happened at an earlier time 
Before starting the hike, we made sure that we had all of the food, water, and gear 
to hike safely! 
Before that​ - indicates what happened earlier than an already stated event, implied 
by​ that 
Once we were sure we had everything, we packed it all into our backpacks. Before 
that, we checked the map to confirm that we were starting on the right trail. 
Finally​ - indicates that something happened last in a process 
Finally, we started our hike at 10 AM! 
During  -  1)  ​throughout  the  entire  time  of  (an  event,  time  period,  etc.) OR ​2) ​at some 
time in the course of something 
Definition One Examples: 
● She exercises everyday during the week.  
● They were a couple during all four years of university. 
Definition Two Examples: 
● It started to rain during the picnic. 
● She delivered her lecture during the conference. 
EXERCISE 
1 I watched TV _______after__________ I went to bed last night.  
2 I caught the ball _____after____________ he threw it.  
3 He saw the fire. _____after that____________, he cried for help.  
4 I got washed and dressed _____before_______ I went to work.  
5 The phone rang. _______after that________, I answered it.  
6 _____first_________, she got on the plane and then she found her seat.  
7 Mr. Davies lived to be 104 years old. He _____finally_________ died in 1908.  
8 They said, “Good-bye” _____before________ they left.  
9 I was late but after two hours I ______finally__________ arrived at college.  
10 We bought the movie tickets. ______next/after that/then ____, we saw the movie.  
11 The little boy cried _____after__________ he fell off his bicycle.  
12 ___First_____, Tom opened the box and then he looked inside.  
13 ___First____, he went to the bank. After that, he went shopping.  
14 I stayed awake until midnight and _______then/next/after/finally____________ I fell
asleep.  
15 I made an apple pie yesterday. ______before_______, I went to the store to buy apples.