… ，后来 … (afterwards / later — past)

A past story has a later turn

You tell someone that you visited Beijing and later visited Shanghai.
first先xiāngo去qù(completed / change)了leBeijing北京Běi jīng，later后来hòu láigo去qù(completed / change)了leShanghai上海Shàng hǎi。 — later后来hòu lái links the later part of the past story to the earlier visit.

Practice

You tell someone that you visited Beijing and later visited Shanghai. What does 先去了北京，后来去了上海。 communicate?

后来 links the later part of the past story to the earlier visit.
后来 proves that the second trip began immediately when the first trip ended.

Build the form

The pattern in this lesson is … ，later后来hòu lái … (afterwards / later — past). Locate it in the original interlinear examples below.
Keep the words in their demonstrated positions; the pattern must fit the intended situation as well as the sentence form.

I我wǒfirst先xiāngo去qù了leBeijing北京Běi jīng，later后来hòu láigo去qù了leShanghai上海Shàng hǎi。

Practice

Using the lesson pattern in this demonstrated example: First Beijing, then later Shanghai: 先去北京，____ 去上海。

Read examples in context

In the opening example, first先xiāngo去qù(completed / change)了leBeijing北京Běi jīng，later后来hòu láigo去qù(completed / change)了leShanghai上海Shàng hǎi。: later后来hòu lái links the later part of the past story to the earlier visit.
Explain who acts, what is described and which time or group is relevant before choosing an English paraphrase.

Practice

后来 is used for which time frame?

the past (telling a story)
the future (plans)

Practice

Build: “First Beijing, later Shanghai.”

先去了北京 (first went to Beijing)
后来 (later)
去了上海 (went to Shanghai)

Know the boundary

For a future plan prefer then / after然后rán hòu or after以后yǐ hòu.
Later does not require immediate succession; later后来hòu lái can cover a gap whose length the sentence leaves unspecified.

Practice

You can use 后来 to talk about future plans.

Practice

后来 proves that the second trip began immediately when the first trip ended.

Use the distinction

Key idea

later后来hòu lái links the later part of the past story to the earlier visit.
For a future plan prefer then / after然后rán hòu or after以后yǐ hòu. Later does not require immediate succession; later后来hòu lái can cover a gap whose length the sentence leaves unspecified.

Read the full reference: HSK 3 grammar — Nouns.

Practice

You tell someone that you visited Beijing and later visited Shanghai. Close the examples. Say a Mandarin response, then write it in Chinese. Explain briefly in English what the lesson’s pattern adds. Compare with the model, then change one detail and try again.