アフタヌーン

also: あふたーぬーん

あ

ふ

た

ぬ

ー

ん

Common wordFreq.FrequencyTop 50,000

Meanings

1

noun

afternoon

Katakana loanword-style equivalent of 午後. In ordinary time expressions 午後 is more standard; アフタヌーン is especially common in stylish or commercial compounds such as アフタヌーンティー or アフタヌーンセット.

Usage patterns

アフタヌーンティーを楽たのしむto enjoy afternoon tea
ホテルのラウンジでアフタヌーンティーを楽たのしんだ。
We enjoyed afternoon tea in the hotel lounge.

Related words

午ご後ごN5sense 1
午後 is the standard, neutral Japanese word for 'afternoon' used in schedules and everyday speech, while アフタヌーン is a stylish loanword mainly seen in commercial or fashionable compounds.

Opposites

午ご前ぜんN5sense 1
午前 means 'morning/before noon', the direct opposite of アフタヌーン's 'afternoon' sense.

Don't confuse with

アフタヌーンドレス sense 2
アフタヌーンドレス is the full fashion term for a daytime formal dress, while アフタヌーン alone is sometimes used as its shortened form and can be mistaken for the everyday 'afternoon' meaning.

Word family

Written forms

アフタヌーンUsage98%
Standard katakana form; commonly seen in borrowed compounds and commercial names.
アフターヌーンUsage2%
rarely-used kana form
Rare attested variant spelling with a long vowel after タ.

Etymology

Katakana loanword-style form corresponding to English 'afternoon'. No explicit language-of-origin information is specified, so the origin is stated cautiously.