having finished that

USAGE SUMMARY

"having finished that" is correct and usable in written English.
You can use it when you want to refer to something that was completed prior to a current event. For example: "Having finished that assignment, I was free to focus on my other projects."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

6 human-written examples

Having finished that thought, Obama suddenly straightened up, as if something else important had just occurred to him.

The New York Times - Magazine

And having finished that formality, Martin, the National Basketball Association's No. 1 draft pick, was eager to earn his salary.

The New York Times - Sports

Having finished that thought, take a breath and let the next thought drop into your head and come out of your mouth.

The Guardian

And now, having finished that salute, this column will return to its regular programming, which is delivering the written equivalent of a Dutch rub to any consumer-abusing chuckleheads that need one.

The New York Times

He had laid down the tracks of a new album, "Me Against the World," before he was incarcerated and, having finished that, he told Vibe magazine, "I can be free.

The New Yorker

Moreover, at the end of the day, you'll feel accomplished having finished that article, debugged that program, or arranged that meetup.

Huffington Post

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

54 human-written examples

The Nasdaq composite index had finished that day at 4,149.

The New York Times

It felt like I had finished that story in my life.

The New York Times

By the time I had finished, that confident, measured timbre had returned to Cheney's voice.

The New Yorker

She thinks that he could have finished that task over the course of several hours if he had wanted.

The New York Times - Science

8.16pm ET: That's it, Obama has finished: that was about 14 minutes long, quite short by Obama's standards.

The Guardian

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "having finished that" to clearly establish a temporal sequence, ensuring the reader understands one action precedes another. This is especially useful in instructions or narratives where order is important.

Common error

Avoid ambiguity by ensuring the subject of the main clause directly follows "having finished that". Otherwise, it might seem the wrong subject completed the action.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "having finished that" functions as an introductory gerund phrase, modifying the main clause by indicating a completed action that precedes the action in the main clause. As Ludwig AI confirms, it's correct and usable in written English. It creates a temporal relationship between two events.

Expression frequency: Uncommon

Frequent in

News & Media

62%

Wiki

19%

HuffPost

6%

Less common in

Forbes

4%

BBC

4%

TechCrunch

1%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "having finished that" is a grammatically correct and usable gerund phrase that establishes a clear temporal sequence. It functions to indicate that one action is completed before another begins, thereby providing context and logical flow. While Ludwig AI confirms its correctness, and the phrase is suitable for various contexts, it's important to ensure clarity by placing the subject of the main clause directly after the phrase to avoid misplaced modifiers. Although the phrase appears most frequently in News & Media sources, it maintains a neutral register making it useful in academic writing, and in instructions.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

after completing that

Replaces the gerund phrase with a more explicit temporal clause.

once that was finished

Uses a passive construction to emphasize the completed action.

upon finishing that

A more formal alternative using "upon" to indicate the time of completion.

with that completed

Emphasizes the state of completion as a condition for the next action.

that being done

A concise way to indicate the completion of the prior action.

after that was done

Similar to "once that was finished" but with a slightly different word order.

having concluded that

More suitable when referring to finishing a process of reasoning or investigation.

once having finished that

Adds "once" for temporal emphasis; slightly more verbose.

subsequent to finishing that

A formal way to express the sequence of events.

following the completion of that

Formal and emphasizes the completion as a formal event or stage.

FAQs

How can I use "having finished that" in a sentence?

Use "having finished that" to introduce a subsequent action that occurs after the completion of a previous one. For example, "Having finished that, I moved on to the next task".

What are some alternatives to "having finished that"?

You can use alternatives like "after completing that", "once that was finished", or "upon finishing that" depending on the context and desired level of formality.

Is "having finished that" formal or informal?

"Having finished that" is generally considered neutral to slightly formal. While acceptable in most contexts, more formal alternatives like "subsequent to finishing that" might be preferred in academic or professional writing.

What's the difference between "having finished that" and "after finishing that"?

Both phrases indicate a sequence of actions, but "having finished that" emphasizes the completion of the first action as a precondition for the second. "After finishing that" is a more straightforward temporal marker.