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• Better late than never
  Better late than never

  It is better to do something after it was supposed to have been done than not to do it at all.
• better late than never
  better late than never

  Being tardy is better than not at all, as in We've been waiting for you for an hour—but better late than never. This phrase, first recorded about 1200, appears in several early English proverb collections, often with the added but better never late. Today it is often used in exasperation over a delay, as in the example.

Better late than never

Cultural  

1. It is better to do something after it was supposed to have been done than not to do it at all.

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better late than never Idioms  

1. Being tardy is better than not at all, as in We've been waiting for you for an hour—but better late than never. This phrase, first recorded about 1200, appears in several early English proverb collections, often with the added but better never late. Today it is often used in exasperation over a delay, as in the example.

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Example Sentences

We are arriving late at this realization, but better late than never.

From Barron's • Feb. 2, 2026

Too bad he didn’t come to that revelation during Blake Snell’s Game 1 performance, but better late than never as the saying goes.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 18, 2025

It’s better late than never, but it’s well and truly time to cut X loose.

From Slate • Nov. 7, 2024

The new bidding process is better late than never.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 10, 2023

“I should have done this a month ago. The canes bleed if they’re pruned this late, but better late than never, as they say.”

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt