later
Americanadjective
adverb
-
a comparative of late.
The meeting ran later than we expected.
-
afterward, subsequently, or at a time in the future (sometimes followed byon ).
She later said she was sorry. I'll see you later. Let's decide about this later on.
adjective
adverb
-
afterwards; subsequently
-
an expression of farewell
-
eventually; inevitably
Etymology
Origin of later
First recorded before 900; lat(e) ( def. ) + -er 4 ( def. ) for the adjective; lat(e) ( def. ) + -er 5 ( def. ) for the adverb
Explanation
Later is a way to talk about time: some time after now. You can go to a movie later tonight. Later can also mean more recent, as in "Which is the later movie, Gone with the Wind or Citizen Kane?" It can mean toward the end: “He made that movie later in his career.” It can also mean after, as in "You were later than I thought you'd be!" It can also be used in comparison: "He was late; I was later." All these uses are about time, and how time keeps moving on from now to later.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"Because even if the particles decay in a largely uniform patten, there will always be outliers, more persistent particles, that will release radionuclides at a later point in time."
From Science Daily ● Oct. 23, 2026
Cheetham had driven out of a car-rental facility in Atlanta with the wrong vehicle, only later realizing it was electric and not gas.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
A week later, the three were summoned again to simultaneous 2 p.m. meetings—and fired.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
“I don’t know why they didn’t test the lighter before they charged my client, but they did 11 months later, after the fire,” Haney said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026
At the Los Baños camp—days later and miles away—Father Julien is unnerved by the big ditch and the machine guns.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
