Actual meaning of 'After all'

Question

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, after all means:

1. despite earlier problems or doubts:
   The rain has stopped, so the game will go ahead after all.

What's the problem here, raining? Am I correct to think that "after all" means 'ultimately" here because the rain has stopped?

2. used to add information that shows that what you have just said is true:
   I do like her - after all, she is my sister.

Does 'after all' mean 'because' here? Why do we need to use 'after all' here in this sentence?

According to the Macmillan Dictionary, after all also means:

1. used for saying that something is true despite what was said or planned before
   Maybe she was right after all.
   I'm sorry, but we’ve decided not to come after all.

2. used when giving a reason to explain what you have just said
   She shouldn’t be working so hard – she is 70, after all.
   I’m not really ambitious. After all, money isn’t everything.

I don't understand what 'after all' exactly means in both of these usages in the sentences above. Does it mean 'ultimately' or what ?

Could you please illuminate my confusion about what 'after all' actually means?

Note: I have also read How to Grammatically Discern "after all", Phrase? but It wasn't helpful for me for this question

Answer 1

Great question, Yubraj. The dictionary answers that you referenced above are correct but delivered in a way that is rather difficult for even native speakers to understand.

Quite simply, "after all" is used to show that something is true or happened despite reasons to believe otherwise. It's a cue to tell the reader about an idea/action continuing despite something else.

To address your examples above:

1. "The rain has stopped, so the game will go ahead after all." → We might have expected that the game would be cancelled because of the rain. Instead, it's going to continue.
2. "I do like her - after all, she is my sister." → There may have been a question about whether I like my sister. At the end of the day, however, I must like her because she is my sister.
3. "Maybe she was right after all." → I didn't believe that she was right before, but now I think that I was wrong about her.
4. "I'm sorry, but we’ve decided not to come after all." → We intended to be there, but something changed and we are not going to attend.

Now there's another usage which the Macmillan Dictionary captured in the two examples below. In this usage, the intention is to emphasize a point by adding an additional reason.

5. "She shouldn’t be working so hard – she is 70, after all." → She shouldn't be working so hard, especially considering that she is so old.
6. "I’m not really ambitious. After all, money isn’t everything." → I don't need to be ambitious, especially when there are other priorities in life. (This writer is equating ambition with money.)

I hope that this helps. Feel free to ask any follow-up questions and I'll do my best to respond.

Answer 2

I believe 'After all' to be a shortening of 'After all things have been considered'. In the examples given, "I'm sorry, but we've decided not to come after all" is "I'm sorry, but we've decided not to come after all things have been considered" so after they have looked at everything going on and considered them, they have decided not to come.

Answer 3

it just means "in the end" or "after all things are considered". beware of over-analysis! :)

there's a big difference between "dictionary meaning" and usage. so "after all" does indeed mean ultimately (in the end), but it can be used to convey additional meaning, like surprise or contrast or whatever.