The Preposition ДО (Before / Until)
To say that something must happen before or until a certain event, use the preposition до followed by the Genitive case. For masculine nouns ending in a consonant like срок (deadline), add -а (срока). For feminine nouns ending in -я like презентация (presentation), change the -я to -и (презентации).
| We must do this before the deadline. | Мы должны сделать это до срока. |
| The first stage begins before the presentation. | Первый этап начинается до презентации. |
The Preposition ПОСЛЕ (After)
Similarly, to express that an action takes place after an event, use the preposition после, which also requires the Genitive case. For example, перерыв (break) becomes перерыва, and проверка (inspection) becomes проверки.
| After the break, we continue this process. | После перерыва мы продолжаем этот процесс. |
| We get the results after the inspection. | Мы получаем результаты после проверки. |
Working with Modifiers
When you want to say "after this deadline" or "before your presentation," any pronouns or adjectives attached to the noun must also take the Genitive case. For masculine nouns, этот (this) becomes этого. For feminine nouns, ваша (your) becomes вашей.
| After this deadline, we do not discuss changes to the plan. | После этого срока мы не обсуждаем изменения плана. |
| After your presentation, we always discuss changes. | После вашей презентации мы всегда обсуждаем изменения. |