Estoy cansado después de la carrera.

I am tired after the race.

Breakdown of Estoy cansado después de la carrera.

• yo: I
• estar: to be
• después de: after
• cansado: tired
• la carrera: the race

Questions & Answers about Estoy cansado después de la carrera.

Why is it estoy cansado and not soy cansado?

Spanish uses estar for temporary states or conditions and ser for more permanent characteristics.

• Estoy cansado = I am tired (right now, as a state/condition).
• Soy cansado is generally not used to mean “I am tired.” In many contexts it would sound strange or could be interpreted as “I am a tiring person / I’m someone who gets tired easily,” which is not what you want here.

So for physical or emotional states that can change (tired, sick, happy, sad, etc.), use estar:

• Estoy cansado.
• Estoy enfermo.
• Estoy feliz.

Do I need to say yo in this sentence, like Yo estoy cansado?

You don’t need to. In Spanish, the subject pronoun (yo, tú, él, etc.) is often dropped because the verb ending already shows who the subject is.

• Estoy cansado. (completely natural)
• Yo estoy cansado. (also correct, but adds emphasis)

You would typically include yo if:

• You want to contrast: Yo estoy cansado, pero ella no.
• You want to stress I: Yo estoy cansado, no tú.

How does cansado change if a woman is speaking, or if more than one person is tired?

Cansado is an adjective, so it must agree in gender and number with the subject.

• One man: Estoy cansado.
• One woman: Estoy cansada.
• A group of men or a mixed group: Estamos cansados.
• A group of women only: Estamos cansadas.

Same rule with tú, él/ella, etc.:

• Ella está cansada.
• Ellos están cansados.
• Ellas están cansadas.

Why do we say después de here? Can I just say después la carrera?

When después is followed by a noun or an infinitive verb, you almost always need de:

• después de la carrera – after the race
• después de comer – after eating

Después by itself can work as an adverb:

• Te llamo después. – I’ll call you later/afterwards.

But you cannot say:

• ✗ después la carrera

It must be:

• ✓ después de la carrera

Why is it de la carrera and not just de carrera?

The phrase is referring to a specific race, so Spanish uses the definite article la:

• después de la carrera = after the race (a specific one you both know about)

Después de carrera would sound incomplete or wrong in this context. You normally need:

• después de la carrera (the race)
• después de una carrera (a race) – if you mean any race, not a specific one.

What exactly does carrera mean in Latin American Spanish? Could it also mean “career”?

Yes, carrera is a very flexible word. Common meanings in Latin America include:

1. Race (running, cars, bikes, etc.)

   • una carrera de 10 kilómetros – a 10K race

2. University degree / course of study

   • Estudio la carrera de medicina. – I’m studying medicine (as my degree).

3. Professional career / path

   • Mi carrera profesional – my professional career.

In your sentence, la carrera clearly means the race, because of the context with being physically tired.

Could I say después de correr instead of después de la carrera? What’s the difference?

Both are correct, but the nuance is different:

• después de la carrera – after the race (a specific event)
• después de correr – after running (the activity in general)

So:

• Estoy cansado después de la carrera.
  I’m tired after the race (the 5K this morning, for example).

• Estoy cansado después de correr.
  I’m tired after running (as an activity, not necessarily an organized race).

Could I say Estaba cansado después de la carrera? When would I use estaba instead of estoy?

Yes, Estaba cansado después de la carrera is correct, but it’s used when you’re talking about the past from a past point of view.

• Estoy cansado después de la carrera.
  You’re speaking in the present; you are tired now, after a race that just happened.

• Estaba cansado después de la carrera.
  You’re telling a story about the past. For example:
  Ayer corrí una carrera. Estaba cansado después de la carrera.
  Yesterday I ran a race. I was tired after the race.

So estoy = current state; estaba = state at some past time.

Can I change the word order and say Después de la carrera, estoy cansado?

Yes, that’s perfectly correct.

Spanish is flexible with placement of time expressions:

• Estoy cansado después de la carrera.
• Después de la carrera, estoy cansado.

Both are natural. Putting Después de la carrera first slightly emphasizes the time frame:

• As for after the race, that’s when I’m tired.

Why is después written with an accent mark?

The accent mark in después shows where the stress falls in the word.

• The word ends in s, so by default the stress would be on the second-to-last syllable: DE-spués.
• But we actually pronounce it des-PUÉS (stress on the last syllable).

Because the stress is not in the default place, Spanish writes an accent mark: después.

So the accent mark tells you:
“Stress the -pués part.”

Would it be correct to say Estoy cansado por la carrera or Estoy cansado a causa de la carrera?

Yes, but the meaning shifts slightly from time to cause:

• Estoy cansado después de la carrera.
  Emphasizes when: I’m tired after the race (in that moment after finishing).

• Estoy cansado por la carrera.
  Emphasizes cause: I’m tired because of the race. (The race is the reason.)

• Estoy cansado a causa de la carrera.
  Also focuses on cause, a bit more formal: I’m tired due to the race.

All are grammatically correct; choose después de if you want to highlight time, and por / a causa de if you want to highlight the reason.

How could I make the idea of being tired stronger, like “very tired” or “exhausted”?

You can intensify cansado or use a stronger adjective:

1. Add muy:

   • Estoy muy cansado. – I’m very tired.

2. Use agotado / rendido:

   • Estoy agotado. – I’m exhausted.
   • Estoy rendido. – I’m worn out.

3. For a woman, remember to change the ending:

   • Estoy muy cansada después de la carrera.
   • Estoy agotada después de la carrera.