as in later
after the due, usual, or proper time
she belatedly realized that it had been her friend's birthday the day before
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Recent Examples of belatedly
His future had been regularly discussed for 18 months before belatedly signing a new contract in April 2025 after fraught negotiations.
—
Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 10 June 2026
That’s when Hilton renewed his earlier calls for Bianco to belatedly drop out of the race.
—Kaitlyn Schallhorn, Oc Register, 9 June 2026
The Spanish Catholic hierarchy is belatedly reckoning with decades of abuse and cover-ups in the once-staunchly Catholic country.
—ABC News, 6 June 2026
The Digest Feminist, self-taught, and belatedly recognized French artist Raymonde Arcier has died at 86.
—Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 2 June 2026
That contrast was also manifest in the relative outcomes; the White House only belatedly announced deals for the sale of 200 Boeing jets and at least $17 billion of American agricultural products annually to China through 2028.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 20 May 2026
But apparently OpenAI has belatedly figured out which way the wind is blowing.
—Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 19 May 2026
To begin the response this belatedly only lengthens the road to resolution.
—Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 19 May 2026
Those left without jobs included more than 4,800 direct and indirect employees in South and Central Florida, according to a WARN notice the company belatedly filed with the state of Florida on May 4.
—David Lyons, Chicago Tribune, 14 May 2026
Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 10 June 2026
That’s when Hilton renewed his earlier calls for Bianco to belatedly drop out of the race.
—Kaitlyn Schallhorn, Oc Register, 9 June 2026
The Spanish Catholic hierarchy is belatedly reckoning with decades of abuse and cover-ups in the once-staunchly Catholic country.
—ABC News, 6 June 2026
The Digest Feminist, self-taught, and belatedly recognized French artist Raymonde Arcier has died at 86.
—Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 2 June 2026
That contrast was also manifest in the relative outcomes; the White House only belatedly announced deals for the sale of 200 Boeing jets and at least $17 billion of American agricultural products annually to China through 2028.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 20 May 2026
But apparently OpenAI has belatedly figured out which way the wind is blowing.
—Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 19 May 2026
To begin the response this belatedly only lengthens the road to resolution.
—Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 19 May 2026
Those left without jobs included more than 4,800 direct and indirect employees in South and Central Florida, according to a WARN notice the company belatedly filed with the state of Florida on May 4.
—David Lyons, Chicago Tribune, 14 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for belatedly
Adverb
-
Seven decades later that number has climbed to seventy-three, while those in the richest nations have surpassed an average of over fourscore years, a number the Bible reserves for only the most vigorous among us.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 June 2026
-
Forty minutes later, the Wolves had a stunning come-from-behind Game 6 victory.—
Corey Masisak,
Denver Post,
11 June 2026
Adverb
-
While Reaves returned for the conference semifinals, Doncic was unable to recover in time to rejoin the starting lineup at any point in the postseason after suffering a hamstring injury late in the regular season.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
17 June 2026
-
There is a pervasive tendency of late to front-load narrative, baggage and personality when pushing new music, so that a uniform brand identity is preserved and prospective fans quickly indoctrinated.—
Sheldon Pearce,
NPR,
16 June 2026
Adverb
-
Crisis negotiators were able to contact O'Brien via phone, eventually leading to his surrender.—
WCCO Staff,
CBS News,
17 June 2026
-
Damaging wind gusts potentially topping 75 mph will take over as the main threat later Wednesday night, with individual storms expected to merge into cohesive lines from eastern Kansas first and eventually expand to western Ohio.—
Mary Gilbert,
CNN Money,
17 June 2026
Adverb
-
Further up, life was slowly starting to return downtown with the grounds of the national palace once more serving as the seat of the government after years of being off-limits due to the violence.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
17 June 2026
-
The area where a coach’s fingerprints are most evident is on special teams, and Vegas’ power play slowly deteriorated down the stretch.—
Jesse Granger,
New York Times,
16 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Belatedly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/belatedly. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.
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