late

adjective

\ ˈlāt

later; latest

Definition of late

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a(1) : coming or remaining after the due, usual, or proper time a late spring was late for class

(2) : of, relating to, or imposed because of tardiness had to pay a late fee

b(1) : of or relating to an advanced stage in point of time or development : occurring near the end of a period of time or series the late Middle Ages

(2) : far advanced toward the close of the day or night late hours

2a : living comparatively recently : now deceased —used of persons the late John Doe and often with reference to a specific relationship or status his late wife

b : being something or holding some position or relationship recently but not now the late belligerents

c : made, appearing, or happening just previous to the present time especially as the most recent of a succession our late quarrel

late

adverb

later; latest

Definition of late (Entry 2 of 2)

1a : after the usual or proper time got to work late

b : at or to an advanced point of time

2 : not long ago : recently a writer late of Chicago

of late

: in the period shortly or immediately preceding : recently has been sick of late

Other Words from late Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about late

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Choose the Right Synonym for late

Adjective

dead, defunct, deceased, departed, late mean devoid of life. dead applies literally to what is deprived of vital force but is used figuratively of anything that has lost any attribute (such as energy, activity, radiance) suggesting life. a dead, listless performance defunct stresses cessation of active existence or operation. a defunct television series deceased, departed, and late apply to persons who have died recently. deceased is the preferred term in legal use. the estate of the deceased departed is used usually as a euphemism. our departed sister late is used especially with reference to a person in a specific relation or status. the company's late president

Examples of late in a Sentence

Adjective

It happened in late spring. a word first recorded in the late 17th century We had a late spring this year. Hurry up or we'll be late for school. Their warning was too late to help him. I've always been a late riser. He made a donation to the school in memory of his late wife.

Adverb

Late in the year he became ill. It rained late in the day. Late in his career he moved to the city. a word first recorded late in the 17th century They were trailing by a touchdown late in the fourth quarter. The package should be arriving late next week. He sent in his job application late. They arrived too late for breakfast. I like getting up late. The package arrived late, but better late than never!

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

While filming for the show's latest season was underway, the mayor of Kansas City, Sly James, took to Twitter to encourage people to nominate locals for the Netflix hit. — Alison Caporimo, Seventeen, "Here's Exactly How To Nominate Someone For "Queer Eye"," 28 Mar. 2019 His latest series, Happy! , allows Chris to go back to his comedic roots — this time though, with an imaginary unicorn as his co-star. — Selena Barrientos, Good Housekeeping, "Every Question You Have About 'Happy!' Star Christopher Meloni’s Wife and Two Kids, Answered," 27 Mar. 2019 To launch Chanel’s latest 3.55 podcast series, the brand is debuting a podcast interview between Monocle’s editor-in-chief Tyler Brûlé and Lagerfeld. — Steff Yotka, Vogue, "Karl Lagerfeld Has the Last Word on Chanel’s New Podcast," 2 Mar. 2019 The Federal Reserve held its benchmark interest rate steady Wednesday and delivered its strongest signal to date that the central bank may have reached the end of its latest series of interest-rate increases. — Nick Timiraos, WSJ, "Fed Chairman Heads to Capitol, Faces Questions on Slowing Economy, Trump Criticism," 26 Feb. 2019 Acer has upgraded the machine with a Core i7-8500Y processor, a member of Intel’s latest Amber Lake Y-series of chips. — Mark Hachman, PCWorld, "Acer's new Swift 7 ultra-thin PC is even smaller, but adds Thunderbolt, Amber Lake and a clickpad," 6 Jan. 2019 Netflix is kicking things off with the third season of A Series of Unfortunate Events, the final season of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, and its latest series, a reboot of Carmen Sandiego. — Bryan Bishop, The Verge, "Everything coming to Netflix, Amazon Prime, and HBO Now in January," 30 Dec. 2018 Some are saying her latest, The Fix on ABC, is inspired by her experience with O.J. Simpson. — Megan Stein, Country Living, "Where Is Marcia Clark Now? All About the O.J. Simpson Prosecutor and Her Show 'The Fix'," 19 Mar. 2019 Now that Marcia has started to make her way back into the public eye, The Fix is her latest — and arguably biggest — project. — Heather Finn, Good Housekeeping, "Is 'The Fix' Based on a True Story? Here's the Truth Behind Marcia Clark's New Show," 18 Mar. 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Adverb

This means Easter can occur as early as March 22 and as late as April 25. — Marie Milano, Country Living, "When Is Palm Sunday, and Why Does the Date Always Change?," 8 Mar. 2019 For those skipping town, the ideal times to leave were either early this morning (July 3rd), or late this evening. — Southern Living, "Google Knows the Best Time to Beat Traffic This Fourth of July," 3 July 2018 But this redesign came so late in the design process that several prototypes of the original Fett figure had already been made. — Alexander Huls, Popular Mechanics, "The Great Star Wars Heist," 7 Mar. 2019 President Trump and the First Lady traveled to Iraq late on Christmas night to visit with our troops and Senior Military leadership to thank them for their service, their success, and their sacrifice and to wish them a Merry Christmas. — Alexia Underwood, Vox, "Trump’s secret trip to Iraq didn’t quite go as planned," 27 Dec. 2018 With Sweden still looking to threaten late on, Pickford produced yet another world-class fingertip save to deny former Manchester City striker John Guidetti from reducing the deficit. — SI.com, "Sweden 0-2 England: Football Takes Huge Step Closer to Home as Three Lions Dominate Against Swedes," 7 July 2018 Would Brazil have gotten a couple of borderline calls late on if Neymar’s reputation for simulation didn’t precede him? — Martin Rogers, USA TODAY, "Brazil is no longer the class of world soccer," 6 July 2018 The Los Angeles Lakers, who reached an agreement with former Kansas guard Malik Newman late on the evening of the June 21 NBA Draft, announced Newman's signing on Sunday — the first day of NBA free agency. — Gary Bedore, kansascity, "Former KU guard Newman officially a member of Lakers, courtesy of two-way contract," 1 July 2018 Closing arguments end late on the Friday before Labor Day weekend, but Judge J.P. Boulee orders jurors to begin deliberating. — Erin Moriarty, CBS News, "Was alleged rape and shooting death investigation influenced by reality TV cameras?," 30 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'late.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.