afterclap
/ˈæftə(ɹ)klæp/
afterclap noun: an additional adverse event that occurs unexpectedly after an earlier one was thought to be over and done with.
Noun (1)
afterclap (plural afterclaps)
- An additional adverse event that occurs unexpectedly after an earlier one was thought to be over and done with.
- […] immediatly after the Vniuersall deluge, Nimrod […] perswaded the people to secure themselues from the like after-claps, by building some stupendious Edifice, which might resist the fury of a second deluge.1625, Peter Heylyn, “Of Assyria, Mesopotamia, and Chaldea”, in Mikrokosmos, Oxford, p
- What plaguy mischiefs and mishaps
Do dog him still with after-claps!1663, Samuel Butler, Hudibras, London: Canto 3, page 77
- An unfavourable turn of events following a favourable situation; an eventuality for which one ought to be prepared.
- […] as cookes among all their sawces doo mind nothing lesse than sobernesse: so these in the abundance of their ioies, thought nothing of afterclaps […]1587, Raphael Holinshed et al., “Henrie the Second”, in Chronicles, volume 3, page 93
- To spare a little for an after clappe
Were not improuidence.1630, Philip Massinger, The Renegado, London: John Waterson, act I, scene 3
- The consequence (often, but not always, adverse) of an action or event.
- […] he loves Pleasure; but then, without any Afterclap; fain would he be gathering Roses, but he’s afraid of the Prickles.1753, uncredited translator, The School of Man, London: Lockyer Davis, 2nd ed., pp. 102-103
- My notion is that the Senatorial result in this State is the best that could have been attained. I am not sure about the after-clap, but I think quieter politics in this State will result.1891, Grover Cleveland, letter to William Freeman Vilas in Allan Nevins (ed.), Letters of Grover Cleveland, Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1933, p. 244
- Synonyms:
- outcome, repercussion, reverberation, upshot
- A phenomenon occurring after a similar earlier one; a later manifestation of something.
- Emerson spoke of the Mormons. Some one had said, “They impress the common people, through their imagination, by Bible-names and imagery.” “Yes,” he said, “it is an after-clap of Puritanism. […]”1884, Oliver Wendell Holmes, chapter 11, in Ralph Waldo Emerson, Boston: Houghton, Mifflin, page 268
- The drama of the Revolution is not French alone; it is European. It has its afterclap in every empire, in every kingdom, even to the most distant lands.1891, Elizabeth Gilbert Martin (translator), Marie Antoinette and the Downfall of Royalty by Arthur-Léon Imbert de Saint-Amand, New York: Scribner, 1891, Chapter 4, p. 32
- Synonyms:
- echo
- A sound that follows another, especially a loud noise, such as thunder.
- […] these Thunder-claps so dreadful before, that proceeded from the shock he gave its Enemy, were no more now but the dull Sound of those little After-claps, which denote the end of a Storm;1687, Cyrano de Bergerac, translated by Archibald Lovell, The Comical History of the States and Empires of the Worlds of the Moon and Sun, London: Henry Rhodes, page 166
- […] the storm wore gradually away, now and then only a faint after-clap grumbled in the distance […]1862, Johannes Scotus, chapter 17, in The Weird of the Wentworths, volume 1, London: Saunders, Otley, page 178
- Synonyms:
- echo
- A symptom of an illness, especially one that appears after the initial onset; an illness or symptom caused by exposure to a substance, an injury, etc.
- For such as haue this Gonorrhaea, neuer suspecting or fearing the afterclaps, suffer their disease, to grow on further and further till their cure will very hardly or neuer be accomplished.1594, John Hester, chapter 10, in The Pearle of Practise, London, page 59
- […] we are not so stupid and zealously Lunatick, as not to fear the frequent Afterclaps (Feavers, Dropsies, Surfeits,) of high and constant debaucheries […]1678, Thomas Collard, Animadversions upon a Fatal Period, London: Thomas Basset, page 42
- Synonyms:
- sequela, side-effect, symptom
- Urethral discharge as a symptom of gonorrhea.
- […] I have known instances where the gonorrhœa has ceased without leaving any after-clap, or gleet,1830, John Abernethy, chapter 22, in Surgical and Physiological Works, London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, and Green, page 276
- […] the fourth stage of the complaint, known as a “gleet,” or afterclap.1877, William Morgan, Contagious Diseases, London: The Homœopathic Publishing Company, Part 1, p. 35
- Synonyms:
- gleet
- A change or attempted change to an agreement after it has been entered into; an additional charge (especially one over and above the previously agreed-upon price).
- […] he produced my Accompt in his Book, and very generously crossed it out, but I desired a Receipt to prevent any After-claps, which he readily granted, and then I very lovingly took my Leave of him.1755, Peter Drake, The Memoirs of Capt. Peter Drake, Dublin, page 162
- I shall charge you a halfpenny apiece for every copy I send you, the short as well as the long. This is a sort of afterclap you little expected, but I cannot possibly afford them at a cheaper rate.1780, William Cowper, letter to William Unwin in William Hayley (ed.), The Life and Letters of William Cowper, London: J. Johnson, 1812, p. 293
- A child born after the one that was intended to be the last.
- […] there are only two girls. No after claps, like my sister Gresham’s little ‘Teddy;’ […]1845, Anna Maria Hall, “The Governess”, in The Private Purse, New York: C.S. Francis, page 97
- He was his parents’ Benjamin, the afterclap which had come to them almost in their old age, and was in some sort different to them from their older sons.1906, Molly Elliot Seawell, chapter 1, in The Victory, New York: Appleton, page 10
- A sweet food, drink, or tobacco product consumed at the end of a meal.
- Never speak of dinner as “grub,” “hash” or “trough-time,” nor refer to the dessert as “an after-clap.”1883, Nathan D. Urner, “In the Use of Language”, in Never, New York: G.W. Carleton, page 68
- They were further regaled with confections and pastry; and the whole was crowned by an ‘afterclap’ of tobacco mixed with aromatic substances, to be enjoyed in pipes, or in the form of cigars, inserted in holders of tortoise shell or silver.1903, Sarah Warner Brooks, chapter 11, in Alamo Ranch, Cambridge: MA, page 95
Noun (2)
afterclap (plural afterclaps)
- A canvas curtain or tailboard at the rear of a covered wagon.
- And now the “after-clap” of the wagon was hurriedly drawn aside, and three young faces were seen peeping forth.1856, Thomas Mayne Reid, chapter 13, in The Bush-Boys,, Boston: Ticknor and Fields, page 93
- […] he felt for his gun, and began fumbling at the fastenings of the afterclap.1905, Reginald Fenton, A Peculiar People in a Pleasant Land, Girard, KS: The Pretoria Publishing Company, Chapter 7, p. 98
afterclap meaning in Tamil
afterclap in Tamil
- புறனடை
Examples of afterclap in a sentence
- AFTERCLAPS, unpleasant things coming after affairs which were supposed ended.1865, William Stott Banks, A List of Provincial Words in Use at Wakefield in Yorkshire, London: J.R. Smith, page 3:
- Strange to say, the gale, after easing to a mild breeze, recrudesced in a sort of afterclap.1915, Jack London, chapter 46, in The Mutiny of the Elsinore, New York: Macmillan, page 332:
- That burglary following so immediately upon the festivities of our delightful Christmas holidays, seemed a most trying and unfortunate afterclap; but we will hope for better things next time.1916, Martha Finley, chapter 19, in Christmas with Grandma Elsie, New York: Dodd, Mead, page 317:
- As an afterclap of Black Tuesday, the Duma initiated but did not approve a vote of no-confidence in the government.2008, Timothy J. Colton, chapter 12, in Yeltsin: A Life, New York: Basic Books, page 306:
Synonyms of afterclap
Forms of afterclap
| plural | afterclaps |
|---|---|
| alternative form | after-clap |
Origin of afterclap
From Middle English afterclap, afterclappe, equivalent to after- + clap. Compare Low German achterklap (“afterclap”).
From Afrikaans agterklap < agter (“rear, after”) + klap (“flap”).
Questions about afterclap
- What does afterclap mean?
- Afterclap means an additional adverse event that occurs unexpectedly after an earlier one was thought to be over and done with.
- What is afterclap in Tamil?
- Afterclap in Tamil is புறனடை. See Afterclap meaning in Tamil.
- How do you use afterclap in a sentence?
- AFTERCLAPS, unpleasant things coming after affairs which were supposed ended.
- What part of speech is afterclap?
- Afterclap is a noun.
- How do you pronounce afterclap?
- Afterclap is pronounced /ˈæftə(ɹ)klæp/.
- What is the plural of afterclap?
- The plural of afterclap is afterclaps.
Words near afterclap in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: afterclap (page history and authors); afterclap (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
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Cite this entry: “afterclap.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/afterclap. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.