Learn Spanish (Latin America): ¿Qué haces después de trabajar?

In English, we often use the -ing form after words like after or before. In Spanish, whenever a verb comes directly after a preposition like de, you must use the infinitive form (the unconjugated dictionary form ending in -ar, -er, or -ir). That is why we use trabajar here instead of trabajando.

Why do we need the word de after después?

The word después by itself just means afterwards or later. When you want to specify what happens next by saying after doing something, you must use the connecting phrase después de.

Does haces mean you do or you make?

It can mean both! The verb hacer translates to both to do and to make. In this context, it clearly means you do because it is asking about your daily activities, but if you were looking at a craft project, it could mean you make.

How would I ask this same question formally?

The word haces goes with tú, the informal word for you. To be formal (using usted), you drop the final s and use hace. The sentence becomes ¿Qué hace después de trabajar?