Después del trabajo, mi hermano y yo vamos al cine.

After work, my brother and I go to the cinema.

Breakdown of Después del trabajo, mi hermano y yo vamos al cine.

• yo: I
• mi: my
• el hermano: the brother
• y: and
• después de: after
• el trabajo: the work
• a: to
• ir: to go
• el cine: the film

Questions & Answers about Después del trabajo, mi hermano y yo vamos al cine.

Why is it del trabajo instead of de el trabajo?

In Spanish, the preposition de + the masculine singular article el contracts to del.

• de + el = del
• a + el = al

So:

• ❌ después de el trabajo
• ✅ después del trabajo

The same happens with al cine:

• ❌ a el cine
• ✅ al cine

Why do we say después de before trabajo?

When después is followed by a noun, you normally need de:

• después de la clase = after class
• después de la cena = after dinner
• después del trabajo = after work

You can use después alone when it’s more like an adverb meaning later:

• Voy al cine. Después te llamo. = I’m going to the movies. I’ll call you later.

With a verb, you also use de:

• después de trabajar = after working
• después de comer = after eating

Can I say Después trabajo, mi hermano y yo vamos al cine?

No, that sounds incorrect or at least very odd. Spanish needs a clearer time reference here:

Correct options:

• Después del trabajo, mi hermano y yo vamos al cine.
• Después de trabajar, mi hermano y yo vamos al cine.
• Cuando salimos del trabajo, mi hermano y yo vamos al cine.

Just después trabajo doesn’t work the way “after work” does in English; you need de plus a noun (del trabajo) or de plus an infinitive (de trabajar).

Why is it mi hermano y yo and not yo y mi hermano?

Grammatically, both are possible:

• Mi hermano y yo
• Yo y mi hermano

However, in natural Spanish (and in polite English), it’s more common and more courteous to mention the other person first:

• Mi hermano y yo vamos al cine. (preferred)
• Yo y mi hermano vamos al cine. (sounds childish or self-centered)

So the sentence uses the more natural and polite word order.

Could I replace mi hermano y yo with nosotros?

Yes:

• Mi hermano y yo vamos al cine.
• Nosotros vamos al cine.

Both are correct and mean We go to the movies / We are going to the movies.

Differences:

• Mi hermano y yo makes it explicit who we are.
• Nosotros is shorter and more general; context must make it clear who we refers to.

A very natural option is also to drop the pronoun entirely:

• Vamos al cine. (We’re going to the movies.)

Spanish often omits subject pronouns because the verb ending (-mos in vamos) already tells you it’s we.

Why is the verb vamos (present tense) used if this is about a future plan?

Spanish often uses the present tense to talk about the near future, especially for plans and scheduled actions:

• Mañana vamos al cine. = Tomorrow we’re going to the movies.
• El sábado comemos con mis padres. = On Saturday we’re having lunch with my parents.

It’s similar to English “We’re going to the movies (later)” or “We’re seeing them tomorrow.”

You could also say:

• Después del trabajo, mi hermano y yo vamos a ir al cine.
  (More literally: After work, my brother and I are going to go to the movies.)

Both are correct; vamos alone is very natural for plans in the near future.

What exactly does cine mean here?

Cine can mean:

1. The place (the movie theater / cinema):
   
   • Ir al cine = to go to the movies / to the cinema.
2. The art form / industry (film, cinema):
   
   • Me gusta el cine mexicano. = I like Mexican cinema.

In this sentence, al cine clearly means to the movie theater / to the movies.

If you want to emphasize the film itself, you’d use película:

• Vamos a ver una película. = We’re going to watch a movie.

Why is it al cine and not just a cine?

Spanish usually needs an article with singular countable nouns when you mean a specific kind of place:

• Voy al cine. = I’m going to the movies.
• Voy al banco. = I’m going to the bank.
• Voy a la tienda. = I’m going to the store.

Here:

• a + el cine = al cine

If you said a cine (without article), it would sound wrong. The article el is required, then it contracts with a to al.

Is the comma after trabajo necessary?

The comma in:

• Después del trabajo, mi hermano y yo vamos al cine.

is recommended because Después del trabajo is an introductory time phrase. In everyday writing, some people might omit it, but the version with a comma is more standard and clearer.

You can also move the time expression to the end:

• Mi hermano y yo vamos al cine después del trabajo.
  (Here you usually don’t put a comma.)

Could I say Después de trabajar, mi hermano y yo vamos al cine instead of Después del trabajo?

Yes, both are correct and very natural:

• Después del trabajo, mi hermano y yo vamos al cine.
  • Focuses on the work shift / the work period as a thing.
• Después de trabajar, mi hermano y yo vamos al cine.
  • Focuses on the action of working.

In most contexts, the difference is minimal, and you can use either one.

Why is it mi hermano and not mis hermano?

Mi and mis must agree with the number of the noun:

• mi hermano = my brother (singular)
• mis hermanos = my brothers (plural)

So:

• One brother → mi hermano
• Two or more brothers → mis hermanos

Even if in English you might say “my brother and I”, in Spanish it’s still a single noun (hermano) with mi:

• mi hermano y yo = my brother and I

If mi hermano y yo is we, why isn’t nosotros written in the sentence?

Spanish can omit subject pronouns because the verb conjugation shows who the subject is.

• vamos → 1st person plural (we).

So:

• (Nosotros) vamos al cine.
• (Nosotros) comemos a las tres.

Using nosotros is optional and usually adds emphasis or contrast:

• Nosotros vamos al cine, ellos se quedan en casa.
  We are going to the movies; they are staying home.

In the original sentence, mi hermano y yo already makes the subject clear, so nosotros would be redundant.

Can I change the word order to Mi hermano y yo vamos al cine después del trabajo?

Yes. Both are correct:

• Después del trabajo, mi hermano y yo vamos al cine.
• Mi hermano y yo vamos al cine después del trabajo.

They mean the same thing. The difference is just emphasis and rhythm:

• At the beginning, Después del trabajo sets the time frame first.
• At the end, it’s like adding “…after work” as an extra detail.

Does después del trabajo mean after leaving work or after finishing work?

In normal conversation, después del trabajo is understood as:

• after I / we finish work
• after we’re done with work

It doesn’t literally specify leaving or finishing, but in context it means once the workday is over.

If you want to be more explicit, you can say:

• Después de salir del trabajo, mi hermano y yo vamos al cine.
  = After we leave work, my brother and I go to the movies.