late
Americanadjective
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occurring, coming, or being after the usual or proper time: a late spring.
late frosts;
a late spring.
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continued until after the usual time or hour; protracted.
a late business meeting.
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near or at the end of day or well into the night.
a late hour.
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belonging to the time just before the present moment; most recent.
a late news bulletin;
The car is a late model, but I don't know the exact year.
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immediately preceding the present one; former.
the late attorney general.
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recently deceased.
the late Mr. Phipps.
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occurring at an advanced stage in life.
a late marriage.
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belonging to an advanced period or stage in the history or development of something.
the late phase of feudalism.
adverb
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after the usual or proper time, or after delay.
to arrive late.
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until after the usual time or hour; until an advanced hour, especially of the night.
to work late.
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at or to an advanced time, period, or stage.
The flowers keep their blossoms late in warm climates.
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recently but no longer.
a man late of Chicago, now living in Philadelphia.
idioms
adjective
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occurring or arriving after the correct or expected time
the train was late
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(prenominal) occurring, scheduled for, or being at a relatively advanced time
a late marriage
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(prenominal) towards or near the end
the late evening
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at an advanced time in the evening or at night
it was late
-
(prenominal) occurring or being just previous to the present time
his late remarks on industry
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(prenominal) having died, esp recently
my late grandfather
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(prenominal) just preceding the present or existing person or thing; former
the late manager of this firm
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recently; lately
adverb
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after the correct or expected time
he arrived late
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at a relatively advanced age
she married late
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recently; lately
as late as yesterday he was selling books
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rising and going to bed later than is usual
-
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at a late or advanced stage
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too late
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Usage
Since late can mean deceased, many people think it is better to avoid using this word to refer to the person who held a post or position before its present holder: the previous (not the late ) editor of The Times
Synonym Usage
See modern.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of late
First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English læt “slow, late”; cognate with German lass “slothful,” Old Norse latr, Gothic lats “slow, lazy,” Latin lassus “tired”
Explanation
Late means after the expected time, or at the end of a certain period of time. if you're late for a movie, you get to the theater after the film's already started. If you're a late sleeper, you make a habit of dozing long after your alarm goes off. When you're late, you're not on time. You might also be in your late twenties, which means you're at the end of that decade of your life — closer to 30 than to 20. If your friend calls and says, "Sorry I'm calling so late," she means late at night, at the very end of the day. And if you refer to someone as "the late Mr. Smith," it's a formal way of saying Mr. Smith is dead.
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.
See Examples For:
I shaved a few hundred dollars off the expensive nightly rate and got breakfast, a resort credit, early check-in and late checkout.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
Let’s say the 2027 baseball season starts late.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
When the semis trade started to wobble late last month, many analysts on Wall Street initially hoped the pain would be short-lived.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
This applied to rearranging my childhood bedroom furniture after reading about feng shui in a magazine, redoing my makeup when we were already late and, eventually, cooking.
From Salon ● Jul. 28, 2026
“Yeah, everything is fine. It’s my sister, Janice. She usually works late on Mondays, but I guess not today,” Dad replies, failing to hide the stress in his voice.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
Previous chairs could persuade a colleague against dissenting with a tweak to the statement—a hawkish phrase here, a dovish nod there—or by implying that action was likelier at a later meeting.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
“I’m so offline these days that I thought I had unearthed some cool legendary West Coast water brand, only to be served an Instagram ad for it later that day,” Roman said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
A judge sided with proponents, but an appellate court later rule in Becerra’s favor.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
A month later, he had 95% of a 4.5cm brain tumour removed in surgery - and says he remembers waking up craving KFC.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Seconds later, squinting at Father, he says, “Reckon not. We’re just getting supplies.”
From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Prices topped $100 last week after the Houthi attacks.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026
Then around last week, as the collapse of the U.S.-Iran ceasefire sent energy prices higher, market talk of a July increase began to feed on itself—traders pricing in a move partly because other traders were.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
The company raised $6.1 million in seed funding last December, according to PitchBook.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
After each of the last two seasons, in fact.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
“That’s right, son. Hundreds of people were in our last camp. But not everyone drowned. And not every wagon failed. Most animals made it.”
From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Japan is reeling from the latest major earthquake to hit the country.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Find insight on U.S. homebuyers, Redfin and more in the latest Market Talks covering Financial Services.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
Madison Beer’s latest release, “locket,” is full of references and inspirations from the music of the 2010s, which Beer grew up with.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
The latest Air Force One expenses are for "additional production and certification resources," Boeing said in its earnings press release.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
I’d spoken with Gran the weekend before, about my latest plan to save Sir Fig Newton, and she was totally on board.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
Definitions 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.
