Breakdown of Después de nadar uso la toalla.
yo
I
usar
to use
después de
after
nadar
to swim
la toalla
the towel
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Questions & Answers about Después de nadar uso la toalla.
Why is there de after después? Can’t I just say Después nadar?
In Spanish, después by itself is an adverb meaning “later” or “afterward.” To link it directly to an action (a verb), you need the preposition de. So you say después de nadar (“after swimming”). Without de, the phrase is incomplete.
Why is nadar in the infinitive here? Could I conjugate it instead?
After prepositions like de, Spanish uses the infinitive form of verbs. You can’t put a conjugated verb immediately after de. If you want to use a conjugated form, you’d need a full clause, for example: Después de que nado, uso la toalla, but that’s more formal and often requires the subjunctive. Using the infinitive is simpler and very common.
Why isn’t there a subject pronoun (yo) before uso? Shouldn’t I say Yo uso la toalla?
Spanish is a pro-drop language: you can omit subject pronouns because the verb ending -o already tells you the subject is yo. Adding yo would be redundant. You’d only include it for emphasis, as in Yo uso la toalla (specifically I use the towel).
Why do we say la toalla (“the towel”) instead of una toalla or mi toalla (“a towel”/“my towel”)?
Using la toalla suggests “the towel” you were already using or that’s contextually obvious. In Spanish, definite articles are often used where English might use a possessive or indefinite article. You could say mi toalla if you want to stress it’s your towel, or una toalla if you mean any towel in general.
Do I need a comma after Después de nadar?
No comma is strictly necessary. Después de nadar uso la toalla reads smoothly. You may add a comma for a slight pause—Después de nadar, uso la toalla—but it’s optional and based on your preferred rhythm.
Can I put Después de nadar at the end? For example, Uso la toalla después de nadar?
Yes. Both orders are correct. Placing Después de nadar at the beginning highlights when the action happens; placing it at the end feels more like a single flowing idea.
Why does después have an accent on the é?
Spanish accent rules say that words ending in a vowel, n, or s are stressed on the next-to-last syllable. But después is stressed on the last syllable (des-pués). When stress falls on the last syllable of a word ending in s, it needs an accent mark—hence the é.
Is usar the same as utilizar? Could I say Después de nadar utilizo la toalla?
Yes, usar and utilizar both mean “to use.” Utilizar is slightly more formal or technical. Después de nadar uso la toalla is conversational, but utilizo works fine if you prefer a more formal tone.