later

1 of 3

adverb

lat·​er ˈlā-tər 

: at some time subsequent to a given time : subsequently, afterward

one week later

they later regretted the decision

—often used with on

experience that will be useful later on

later

2 of 3

comparative of late entry 1, late entry 2

-later

3 of 3

noun combining form

: worshipper

bibliolater

Synonyms of later

Adverb

• afterward
• after
• thereafter

Examples of later in a Sentence

Adverb

I'll talk to you again later.

They later regretted the decision.

She returned several weeks later.

I saw him again later that morning.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adverb

Bolsonaro's father, Jair Bolsonaro, also fled to Florida after losing the 2022 presidential election to Lula before returning to Brazil three months later. — Arkansas Online, 29 Oct. 2026

Jeff Stotts, an athletic trainer who runs a site that tracks sports injuries, wrote that since 2005, just one player had sustained a torn labrum like Wallace’s and returned later that season. — Andrew Greif, NBC news, 29 Oct. 2026

More than a century later, Huang, while a graduate student at the University of Michigan, began e-mailing mathematicians letter after letter—more than 40 in total. — Lyndie Chiou, Scientific American, 29 Oct. 2026

Three years later, LACMA’s Contemporary Art Council (now the Modern and Contemporary Art Council) awarded him its New Talent Purchase Grant. — Deborah Vankin, Los Angeles Times, 29 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adverb

see late entry 1

Noun combining form

French -latre, from Late Latin -latres, from Greek -latrēs; akin to Greek latron pay

First Known Use

Adverb

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing later

• at a later/future date
• later on
• no/not later than
• see you (around/later)
• sooner or later
• sooner rather than later

Rhymes for later

• cater
• crater
• frater
• freighter
• gator
• grater
• accelerator
• accumulator
• adjudicator
• administrator
• appropriator
• articulator