late

/leɪt/

Reviewed on

Also an adverb

Meaning

  1. Happening, arriving, or performed after the expected, scheduled, or usual time.

    • Traffic was terrible, so several employees were late for the morning meeting.

  2. Belonging toward the end of an era, season, period of life, or day.

    • A cool breeze swept across the patio during the late afternoon.

  3. Who has died, used before a person's name or title.

    • The scholarship was established in memory of the late professor.

Collocations

  • late arrival
  • late fee
  • running late
  • late afternoon
  • late twenties
  • late summer
  • the late

Synonyms

  • tardy
  • overdue
  • belated
  • deceased
  • departed

Antonyms

Idioms

  • better late than never

    doing something behind schedule is preferable to never doing it at all

    "Better late than never," she said as she handed in the application three days after the deadline.

  • late in the day

    at a stage too advanced to make much difference

    They tried to adjust the marketing strategy, but it was too late in the day.

  • of late

    recently or in the period just passed

    His work has improved significantly of late.