~てはじめて

〜te hajimete

JLPT N3 Chapter 69: Supposing, hoping, regretting, 6 of 6

Formation

Verb-て form + はじめて

Realization or action done for the first time; 'only after', 'not until'.

When to use

てはじめて: only after doing X did you realize or could (失ってはじめて).

Explanation

The ~てはじめて grammar point indicates that something is realized or happens for the first time only after another action is completed. It can be translated as 'only after' or 'not until'.

Example sentences

Sequence (After / As A Result)

Corpus examples (37)

Showing 25 of 37 corpus examples.