post-
poʊst
post- is the footstep that lands after the thing is over
The picture A line is drawn where something ended, and you step into the space on the far side of it. post- comes after the event is over; pre- stands in front of it.
Where the picture shows up in post-
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pushed into a later box
They postponed the meeting to Friday.
ðeɪ poʊstˈpoʊnd ðə ˈmiːtɪŋ tuː ˈfraɪdeɪ
The meeting was moved to Friday.
The meeting card is peeled off today's square and stuck down on Friday's instead.
post (after) + pone (put).
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after the surgery
Your postoperative check is on Monday.
jɔːr ˌpoʊstˈɑːpərətɪv tʃek ɪz ɑːn ˈmʌndeɪ
Your check-up after the operation is on Monday.
The theatre door closes behind you and you meet the doctor again out in the corridor.
A word you meet on hospital paperwork.
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study that keeps going
She is doing postgraduate work.
ʃiː ɪz ˈduːɪŋ ˌpoʊstˈɡrædʒuət wɜːrk
She is studying beyond her degree.
Someone takes off the graduation cap and sits back down at a library desk.
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one line after the end
He added a postscript at the bottom.
hiː ˈædɪd ə ˈpoʊstskrɪpt æt ðə ˈbɑːtəm
He put an extra line at the bottom.
Under a letter that is already signed, one small extra line goes into the blank space.
post (after) + script (written).
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after the war
This building is postwar.
ðɪs ˈbɪldɪŋ ɪz ˌpoʊstˈwɔːr
This building went up after the war.
The rubble has been cleared and new walls are rising on the cleaned ground.
All of it in one picture
post- is one finger pointing past the finish line. Push the meeting out of today's box into Friday's and you postpone it; the check that comes once the surgery is done is postoperative. Study that keeps going after the graduation stamp is postgraduate; one more line written after the signature is a postscript; a building raised after the war ended is postwar. So when you see post-, just find what it is standing behind.