also: あとはら
noun
afterbirth pains; afterpains
Medical/obstetric term for uterine contractions after childbirth. Not an everyday word; used in clinical or explanatory contexts.
出産後、後腹が続くことがあります。
After childbirth, afterpains may continue.
noun
repercussions; consequences; aftermath
Figurative extension: unpleasant results or troubles that come after an event, like lingering pain. Often used in the phrase 後腹が痛む (to suffer the consequences).
あの決断の後腹がまだ痛む。
I'm still feeling the repercussions of that decision.
軽率な発言の後腹に苦しんだ。
He suffered the consequences of his careless remark.
noun
child from a later wife
Historical/archaic term for a child born to a second or subsequent wife, contrasted with 先腹 (child from a previous wife). Rare in modern usage outside historical or literary contexts.
See also: 先腹
古文書では、後腹の子の相続について記されている。
In old documents, inheritance by a child from a later wife is recorded.
Antonym for sense 3: child from a previous wife. Also used figuratively for 'preliminary troubles' in contrast to 後腹's 'aftermath'.
Compound of 後 (あと, 'after') and 腹 (はら, 'belly'). The literal meaning 'after-belly' gave rise to the medical sense of afterpains, then extended figuratively to repercussions. The 'child from a later wife' sense is a historical usage derived from the idea of a later pregnancy.