Level 3 · Intermediate
后来 vs 以后 vs 然后
后来 + Past event / (Time +) 以后 / A，然后 B · Traditional: 後來 + Past event / (Time +) 以後 / A，然後 B
All three translate as "later / then", but they don't swap. 后来 (hòulái) only tells stories about the past: 我们以前是同学，后来他去了北京 "we used to be classmates; later he moved to Beijing". No plans, no futures — if it hasn't happened yet, 后来 is out.
以后 covers the future and general "after": 我以后想当老师 "someday I want to be a teacher", 下课以后 "after class". 然后 just chains steps in a sequence, past or future: 我先吃饭，然后做作业 "first I eat, then I do homework".
Examples
我们以前是同学，后来他去了北京。
我們以前是同學，後來他去了北京。
wǒ men yǐ qián shì tóng xué hòu lái tā qù le běi jīng
We used to be classmates — later he went to Beijing.
我以后想当老师。
我以後想當老師。
wǒ yǐ hòu xiǎng dāng lǎo shī
In the future I want to be a teacher.
下课以后，我要去买东西。
下課以後，我要去買東西。
xià kè yǐ hòu wǒ yào qù mǎi dōng xi
After class, I'm going shopping.
我先吃饭，然后做作业。
我先吃飯，然後做作業。
wǒ xiān chī fàn rán hòu zuò zuò yè
First I eat, then I do my homework.
Common mistakes
✗ 我后来想当老师。
✓ 我以后想当老师。
后来 only narrates the past — for the future, "later" is 以后.
Related grammar points
See it in a story
Read this pattern in context: Playing the Qin to a Cow — free graded stories with tap-to-reveal pinyin and translations.
