Breakdown of Nachdem ich das Dokument bearbeitet hatte, druckte ich es aus.
ich
I
es
it
haben
to have
das Dokument
the document
ausdrucken
to print out
nachdem
after
bearbeiten
to edit
Questions & Answers about Nachdem ich das Dokument bearbeitet hatte, druckte ich es aus.
Why do we use "hatte ... bearbeitet" (had edited) in the first half, but just "druckte" (printed) in the second?
This is the strict tense rule for nachdem (after) when talking about the past. Because editing the document happened before printing it, the earlier action must be in the Past Perfect (hatte bearbeitet), and the later action must be in the Simple Past (druckte).
Can I use nach instead of nachdem to mean "after" here?
No, they have different grammatical jobs. Nachdem is a conjunction that connects two full clauses (it introduces a subject and a verb). Nach is a preposition used directly with nouns, like in nach der Arbeit (after work). Since "I had edited the document" is a full clause, you must use nachdem.
Why is the word order druckte ich instead of ich druckte in the second half?
In German, the conjugated verb must be in the second position of a main sentence. Here, the entire nachdem clause counts as "position one." To keep the verb in position two, the main clause must start immediately with druckte, followed by the subject ich.
Where does the aus at the very end of the sentence come from?
It is the prefix of the separable verb ausdrucken (to print out). Even though this main clause comes after a comma, it still follows the standard rule for separable verbs: the conjugated part (druckte) takes the "verb slot," and the prefix (aus) gets kicked to the very end of the sentence.
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