belatedly

American  

[bih-ley-tid-lee] / bɪˈleɪ tɪd li /

adverb

1. after the customary, useful, or expected time.

   If a law shouldn't have been passed in the first place, it's no crime to belatedly reverse it.

   I received your letter last month, and I wanted to thank you, even if belatedly.

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Etymology

Origin of belatedly

belated ( def. ) + -ly

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

belatedly

He faced ridicule after belatedly acknowledging that he played tennis during the day, a detail that was left out his initial accounts.

From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026

His lament mirrored the anguish of legions of Venezuelans who endured harrowing days clearing rubble by hand before crews with heavy equipment and rescue dogs belatedly arrived.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026

Italian luxury carmaker Ferrari has unveiled its first fully electric model, the Luce, belatedly joining rivals like Porsche and Lamborghini to offer clean-energy driving thrills.

From Barron's ● May 26, 2026

But Jackson’s estate belatedly realized a settlement he had signed with the boy’s family forbade it from using his story for commercial purposes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 22, 2026

Now he also experienced belatedly, for once in his life, the strongest and strangest passion; he suffered tre-mendously through it and yet was uplifted, in some way renewed and richer.

From "Siddhartha" by Hermann Hesse

Related Words

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