after shortly

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "after shortly" is not correct and not usable in written English.
It is a contradictory expression, as "shortly" implies a brief time frame, making "after" redundant. Example: "We will meet after shortly" is incorrect.

⚠ May contain grammatical issues

News & Media

Wiki

Science

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

7 human-written examples

Not long after, shortly before the end of the fifth circuit, Marcus Ljungqvist (Sweden), Rigoberto Urán (Colombia) and Johan Van Summeren (Belgium) attacked from the peloton and reeled in Kuschynski and Pidgornyy.

Wikipedia

Once the late-night club is closed in a street, the bar where people used to meet before will close because there's nowhere to go after, shortly followed by the restaurants that people usually eat at before going to the bar, and so forth.

The Guardian

Antrim keeper Chris Kerr did make a crucial save after shortly the restart to deny Darragh Rooney a goal.

BBC

McLemore gets up after shortly leaving the frame and then returns to once again sit cross legged on the ground.

Vice

Kelleher later renamed the project "Chicago Spire" after shortly going by "400 North Lake Shore Drive", as it was no longer a Fordham project.

Wikipedia

To determine the measurement errors in our dataset, 20 participants were scanned and rescanned after shortly leaving the scanner.

Diabetes Care

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

53 human-written examples

floridanus shortly after origin relocation.

Genome Biology and Evolution

Whedon funded her album shortly after.

Wikipedia

Shortly after, Mr. Murray fled.

The New York Times

Shortly after 1 a.m.

The New York Times

Shortly after, his sons leave.

The Economist

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Avoid using "after shortly" in your writing. Opt for more grammatically sound alternatives such as "soon after" or "shortly thereafter" to maintain clarity and credibility.

Common error

Don't combine "after" and "shortly" because "shortly" already implies that something happens after a brief period. Using both together creates an unnecessary and grammatically incorrect expression.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "after shortly" functions as an adverbial phrase intended to indicate the timing of an event in relation to another. However, as Ludwig AI points out, this construction is grammatically incorrect due to the redundancy of "after" and "shortly".

Expression frequency: Uncommon

Frequent in

News & Media

43%

Wiki

29%

Science

28%

Less common in

Formal & Business

0%

Encyclopedias

0%

Social Media

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "after shortly" is grammatically incorrect and redundant. As Ludwig AI explains, the word "shortly" already includes the concept of "after a brief time". While there are examples of its use in various sources, particularly News & Media and Wiki, these instances do not validate its correctness. Instead, it is recommended to use alternatives like "soon after" or "shortly thereafter" to express the intended meaning of a brief period following an event. Avoiding this incorrect phrasing enhances the clarity and credibility of your writing.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

soon after

This alternative replaces "after shortly" with a more concise and standard way of indicating a brief period of time following an event.

shortly thereafter

This option provides a slightly more formal and emphatic alternative, highlighting the immediate succession of events.

immediately after

This phrase stresses the lack of delay between two events, emphasizing their close temporal proximity.

right after

An informal way to express that something happened with no delay, emphasizing immediacy.

just after

This alternative is slightly less emphatic than "immediately after" but still indicates a very short time span.

directly after

Similar to "immediately after", it suggests a direct and unbroken sequence of events.

quickly following

This option uses a more descriptive approach, emphasizing the speed of the succession.

in short order

This idiomatic expression means "soon" or "quickly", replacing the temporal components of the original phrase.

presently after

While less common, this phrase conveys a sense of imminence and nearness in time.

on the heels of

This metaphorical expression indicates that something closely followed something else, often implying a causal connection.

FAQs

How can I correctly express a brief time interval after an event?

Instead of "after shortly", use phrases like "soon after", "shortly thereafter", or "immediately after" to clearly indicate that something happened a short time after a previous event.

Is "after shortly" considered grammatically correct in English?

No, "after shortly" is not grammatically correct. The word "shortly" inherently implies "after a short time", making the "after" redundant and creating an awkward phrasing.

What's the difference between "after shortly" and "shortly after"?

"After shortly" is grammatically incorrect and not commonly used. The correct phrase is "shortly after", which means happening a short time after something.

What are some formal alternatives to "after shortly"?

For formal writing, you can use "subsequently", "thereafter", or "in the immediate aftermath" instead of the incorrect "after shortly".