Does 'the following' mean 'the next' here?
Is it okay to understand "the following afternoon / month / year / week" means "the next afternoon / month / year / week"?

Thank you in advance.

Question

Does 'the following' mean 'the next' here?
Is it okay to understand "the following afternoon / month / year / week" means "the next afternoon / month / year / week"?

Thank you in advance.

Answer

Sort of. The following afternoon is the afternoon that follows. But it usually means the afternoon of the following day. 
We don't usually say "the next afternoon". We have set expressions:
next year
next month
tomorrow afternoon
etc...

Answer

basically, yes.

"the next afternoon" would sound awkward though.  you can simply say "tomorrow afternoon."

:)

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