late

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late

(lāt)

adj. lat·er, lat·est

a. Coming, occurring, continuing, or remaining after the correct, usual, or expected time; delayed: a late breakfast; a late meeting. See Synonyms at tardy.

b. Occurring at an advanced hour, especially well into the evening or night: a late movie on television; the late flight to Denver.

2. Of or toward the end or more advanced part, as of a period or stage: the late 19th century; a later symptom of the disease.

a. Having begun or occurred just previous to the present time; recent: a late development.

b. Contemporary; up-to-date: the latest fashion.

a. Having recently occupied a position or place: the company's late president gave the address.

b. Dead, especially if only recently deceased: in memory of the late explorer. See Synonyms at dead.

adv. later, latest

1. After the expected, usual, or proper time: a train that arrived late; woke late and had to skip breakfast.

a. At or until an advanced hour: talked late into the evening.

b. At or into an advanced period or stage: a project undertaken late in her career.

3. Recently: As late as last week he was still in town.

Idiom:

of late

Recently; lately: was feeling better of late.

[Middle English, from Old English læt; see lē- in Indo-European roots.]

late′ness n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

late

(leɪt)

adj

1. occurring or arriving after the correct or expected time: the train was late.

2. (prenominal) occurring, scheduled for, or being at a relatively advanced time: a late marriage.

3. (prenominal) towards or near the end: the late evening.

4. at an advanced time in the evening or at night: it was late.

5. (prenominal) occurring or being just previous to the present time: his late remarks on industry.

6. (prenominal) having died, esp recently: my late grandfather.

7. (prenominal) just preceding the present or existing person or thing; former: the late manager of this firm.

8. of late recently; lately

adv

9. after the correct or expected time: he arrived late.

10. at a relatively advanced age: she married late.

11. recently; lately: as late as yesterday he was selling books.

12. late hours rising and going to bed later than is usual

13. late in the day

a. at a late or advanced stage

b. too late

[Old English læt; related to Old Norse latr, Gothic lats]

ˈlateness n

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

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

late

(leɪt)

adj. lat•er lat•ter, lat•est last, adj.

1. occurring after the usual or proper time: a late spring.

2. continued until after the usual time or hour: a late business meeting.

3. near or at the end of the day or into the night: a late hour.

4. most recent: a late news bulletin.

5. immediately preceding the present one: the late attorney general.

6. recently deceased: the late Mr. Phipps.

7. occurring at an advanced stage in life: a late marriage.

8. belonging to an advanced period or stage in the history or development of something: the late phase of feudalism.

adv.

9. after the usual or proper time, or after delay: to arrive late.

10. until after the usual time or hour; until an advanced hour, esp. of the night: to work late.

11. at or to an advanced time.

12. recently but no longer.

Idioms:

of late, lately; recently.

[before 900; Middle English; Old English læt slow, late, c. Old Saxon lat, Old High German laz, Old Norse latr, Gothic lats]

late′ness, n.

syn: See modern.

late

- Comes from Indo-European lad-, "slow, weary," which begat Latin lassus, "tired," before English late, meaning "slow."

late

In artillery and naval gunfire support, a report made to the observer or spotter, whenever there is a delay in reporting "shot" by coupling a time in seconds with the report.

Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms. US Department of Defense 2005.

former

– late

1. 'former'

You use former in front of a noun to indicate that the person you are talking about is no longer the thing referred to by the noun. For example, the former chairman of a company used to be the chairman, but is not the chairman now.

...former President Gerald Ford.

...William Nickerson, a former Treasury official.

2. 'late'

You use late in front of a name or noun to indicate that the person you are talking about has recently died.

...the late Mr Parkin.

I'd like to talk to you about your late husband.

late

– lately

1. 'late'

Late can be an adjective or an adverb.

If you are late for something, you arrive after the time that was arranged.

I was ten minutes late for my appointment.

You can also say that someone arrives late.

Etta arrived late.

Don't say that someone 'arrives lately'.

2. 'lately'

You use lately to say that something has been happening since a short time ago.

As you know, I've lately become interested in psychology.

Have you talked to Marianne lately?

Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Adj.	1.	late - being or occurring at an advanced period of time or after a usual or expected time; "late evening"; "late 18th century"; "a late movie"; "took a late flight"; "had a late breakfast" early - at or near the beginning of a period of time or course of events or before the usual or expected time; "early morning"; "an early warning"; "early diagnosis"; "an early death"; "took early retirement"; "an early spring"; "early varieties of peas and tomatoes mature before most standard varieties" middle - between an earlier and a later period of time; "in the middle years"; "in his middle thirties"
	2.	late - after the expected or usual time; delayed; "a belated birthday card"; "I'm late for the plane"; "the train is late"; "tardy children are sent to the principal"; "always tardy in making dental appointments" belated, tardy unpunctual - not punctual; after the appointed time
	3.	late - of the immediate past or just previous to the present time; "a late development"; "their late quarrel"; "his recent trip to Africa"; "in recent months"; "a recent issue of the journal" recent past - earlier than the present time; no longer current; "time past"; "his youth is past"; "this past Thursday"; "the past year"
	4.	late - having died recently; "her late husband" dead - no longer having or seeming to have or expecting to have life; "the nerve is dead"; "a dead pallor"; "he was marked as a dead man by the assassin"
	5.	late - of a later stage in the development of a language or literature; used especially of dead languages; "Late Greek" linguistics - the scientific study of language early - of an early stage in the development of a language or literature; "the Early Hebrew alphabetical script is that used mainly from the 11th to the 6th centuries B.C."; "Early Modern English is represented in documents printed from 1476 to 1700" middle - of a stage in the development of a language or literature between earlier and later stages; "Middle English is the English language from about 1100 to 1500"; "Middle Gaelic"
	6.	late - at or toward an end or late period or stage of development; "the late phase of feudalism"; "a later symptom of the disease"; "later medical science could have saved the child" later early - being or occurring at an early stage of development; "in an early stage"; "early forms of life"; "early man"; "an early computer"
	7.	late - (used especially of persons) of the immediate past; "the former president"; "our late President is still very active"; "the previous occupant of the White House" previous, former past - earlier than the present time; no longer current; "time past"; "his youth is past"; "this past Thursday"; "the past year"
Adv.	1.	late - later than usual or than expected; "the train arrived late"; "we awoke late"; "the children came late to school"; "notice came so tardily that we almost missed the deadline"; "I belatedly wished her a happy birthday" belatedly, tardily ahead of time, too soon, early - before the usual time or the time expected; "she graduated early"; "the house was completed ahead of time"
	2.	late - to an advanced time; "deep into the night"; "talked late into the evening" deep
	3.	late - at an advanced age or stage; "she married late"; "undertook the project late in her career"
	4.	late - in the recent past; "he was in Paris recently"; "lately the rules have been enforced"; "as late as yesterday she was fine"; "feeling better of late"; "the spelling was first affected, but latterly the meaning also" lately, latterly, of late, recently

late

adjective

1. overdue, delayed, last-minute, belated, tardy, behind time, unpunctual, behindhand, L8 (S.M.S.) Steve arrived late.
overdue timely, early, seasoned, prompt, beforehand, punctual

2. dead, deceased, departed, passed on, old, former, previous, preceding, defunct, L8 (S.M.S.) my late husband
dead existing, alive

3. recent, new, advanced, fresh, L8 (S.M.S.) some late news just in for the people of Merseyside
recent old

adverb

1. behind time, belatedly, tardily, behindhand, dilatorily, unpunctually, L8 (S.M.S.) The talks began some fifteen minutes late.
behind time early, in advance, beforehand

2. late at night, in the night, L8 (S.M.S.) We went to bed late.

3. after hours, overtime, till all hours, L8 (S.M.S.) I was working late at the office.

of late recently, just now, in recent times, not long ago, latterly He has changed of late.

Proverbs
"Better late than never"
"It is never too late"

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

late

adjective

1. Not being on time:

behindhand, belated, overdue, tardy.

2. Having been such previously:

erstwhile, former, old, once, onetime, past, previous, quondam, sometime, whilom.

3. No longer alive:

asleep, dead, deceased, defunct, departed, extinct, gone, lifeless.

Idioms: at rest, pushing up daisies.

adverb

1. Not on time:

behind, behindhand, belatedly, tardily.

2. So as to fall behind schedule:

behind, behindhand, slow.

Idiom: behind time.

3. Not long ago:

lately, latterly, recently.

Idiom: of late.

Translations

Spanish / Español

Select a language:

tarde atrasado difunto tardío finales de

late

[leɪt] (later (compar) (latest (superl)))

A. ADV

1. (= towards end of period, day, month, etc) he had arrived late the previous evening → había llegado tarde la noche anterior
late at night → muy de noche, ya entrada la noche
late in the morning → a última hora de la mañana
late in the afternoon → a media tarde
late in the year → a finales del año
late in 1992/May → a finales del año 1992/de mayo
symptoms appear only late in the disease → los síntomas aparecen sólo cuando la enfermedad ya está muy avanzada
it wasn't until late in his career that he became famous → sólo al final de su carrera se hizo famoso, sólo en los últimos años de su carrera se hizo famoso
they scored late in the second half → metieron un gol ya bien entrado el segundo tiempo
late into the night → hasta bien entrada la noche
late that night I got a phone call → ya entrada la noche recibí una llamada de teléfono
too late → demasiado tarde
late in the day (= at the last moment) → a última hora; (= too late) it's a bit late in the day to be changing your mind → es un poco tarde para cambiar de opinión

2. (= after the usual time) [get up, go to bed] → tarde
the chemist is open late on Thursdays → la farmacia cierra tarde los jueves
everything is flowering very late this year → todo está floreciendo tardísimo este año
she came late to acting → empezó a actuar ya mayor
Liz had started learning German quite late in life → Liz había empezado a aprender alemán ya mayor
to sleep late → levantarse tarde
to stay up late → irse a la cama tarde, trasnochar
to work late → trabajar hasta tarde

3. (= after arranged/scheduled time) [arrive] → tarde, con retraso
he arrived ten minutes late → llegó con diez minutos de retraso, llegó diez minutos tarde
they arrived late for dinner → llegaron tarde or con retraso a la cena
we're running late this morning → llevamos retraso esta mañana
we're running about 40 minutes late → llevamos unos 40 minutos de retraso, llevamos un retraso de unos 40 minutos
better late than never → más vale tarde que nunca

4. (= recently)
as late as → aún en
as late as 1950 → aún en 1950
of late (frm) → últimamente, recientemente
Jane Smith, late of Bristol (frm) → Jane Smith, domiciliada hasta hace poco en Bristol

B. ADJ

1. (= towards end of period, day, month, etc) late morning → última hora f de la mañana
late afternoon → media tarde f
late evening → última hora f de la tarde
late 1989 → finales de 1989
it was very late and I was tired → era muy tarde y estaba cansado
in late September/spring → a finales de septiembre/de la primavera
in the late 1960s → a finales de los años sesenta
in the late 18th century → a fines del siglo XVIII
to be in one's late thirties/forties → rondar los cuarenta/cincuenta, tener cerca de cuarenta/cincuenta años
it's getting late → se está haciendo tarde
late goal → gol m de última hora
I apologize for arriving at this late hour → siento llegar a estas horas
even at this late stage → incluso a estas alturas

2. (= after arranged or scheduled time) I apologize for my late arrival → perdone/perdonen mi retraso
we apologize for the late arrival/departure of this train → les rogamos disculpen el retraso en la llegada/salida de este tren
it was postponed to allow for late arrivals → se aplazó por si alguien llegaba tarde or con retraso
our train was late again → nuestro tren se retrasó otra vez, nuestro tren llegó con retraso otra vez
as usual, Jim was late → como siempre, Jim llegó tarde or con retraso, como siempre, Jim se retrasó
sorry I'm late! → ¡siento llegar tarde or con retraso!
you're late! → ¡llegas tarde!
the train is 20 minutes late → el tren llega con 20 minutos de retraso, el tren lleva un retraso de 20 minutos
she's 20 minutes late → lleva 20 minutos de retraso
I was already ten minutes late → ya llegaba diez minutos tarde, ya llevaba diez minutos de retraso
both my babies were late → mis dos hijos nacieron más tarde de la fecha prevista
he was late (in) finishing his essay → terminó la redacción con retraso
she was late (in) returning from work → regresó tarde del trabajo
I was late (in) paying my phone bill → me retrasé en pagar la factura del teléfono
I'm late for my train → voy a perder el tren
I'm late for work → voy a llegar tarde al trabajo
I was half an hour late for my appointment → llegué con media hora de retraso a la cita
a fault on the plane made us two hours late → una avería en el avión nos retrasó dos horas
you're going to make me late for my appointment → vas a hacer que llegue tarde a la cita
we got off to a late start → empezamos tarde or con retraso
I was late with the payments → me había retrasado en los pagos

3. (= after usual or normal time) [reservation, booking] → de última hora; [crop, flowers] → tardío
we had a late breakfast/lunch → desayunamos/comimos tarde
Easter is late this year → la Semana Santa cae tarde este año
"late opening till ten pm on Fridays" → "los viernes cerramos a las diez"
my period is late → se me está retrasando la regla
spring is late this year → la primavera llega tarde este año
see also night A1

4.
too late → demasiado tarde
they tried to operate, but it was too late → intentaron operar, pero era demasiado tarde
it's too late to change your mind → es demasiado tarde para cambiar de opinión
it's not too late (for you) to change your mind → aún estás a tiempo para cambiar de opinión
it's never too late to → nunca es demasiado tarde para ...
see also little A1

5. (Hist, Art) late Baroque → barroco m tardío
the late Middle Ages → la baja edad media
a late Georgian house → una casa de finales del periodo Georgiano
Beethoven's late symphonies → las últimas sinfonías de Beethoven
Rembrandt's late work → las últimas obras de Rembrandt

6. (= dead) → difunto
the late Harry Brown → el difunto Harry Brown

7. (frm) (= former) → antiguo
the late Prime Minister → el antiguo primer ministro

C. CPD late edition N → edición f de última hora
see also developer 2

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

late

(leit) adjective

1. coming etc after the expected or usual time. The train is late tonight; I try to be punctual but I am always late.tarde, atrasado

2. far on in the day or night. late in the day; late at night; It was very late when I got to bed.tarde

3. dead, especially recently. the late king.difunto, fallecido

4. recently, but no longer, holding an office or position. Mr Allan, the late chairman, made a speech.anterior

adverb

1. after the expected or usual time. He arrived late for his interview.tarde

2. far on in the day or night. They always go to bed late.tarde

ˈlateness noun

retraso, atraso

ˈlately adverb

in the recent past or not long ago. Have you seen her lately?últimamente, recientemente

later on

at a later time. He hasn't arrived yet but no doubt he'll be here later on.más adelante, más tarde

of late

lately. He thought she had been less friendly of late.últimamente

later see latter.

late

→ difunto , finales de, tarde , tardío

late

a. tardío-a, último-a;

adv. últimamente, hace poco;

adv. tarde;

___ auditory evoked response → respuesta auditiva evocada ___;

___ dumping syndrome → síndrome de vaciamiento ___;

luteal phase dysphoria ___ → fase luteal ___ de la disforia;

to be ___ → atrasarse, retrasarse.

late

adj (development, etc.) tardío; adv tarde

References in classic literature ?

'You are intimately acquainted, I know, with Lady Barville, the late Lord Montbarry's eldest sister.

View in context

Antigone, daughter of Oedipus, the late king of Thebes, in defiance of Creon who rules in his stead, resolves to bury her brother Polyneices, slain in his attack on Thebes.

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It was too late to call on or inquire for any one, and he reluctantly postponed his purpose till the morning.

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"Oh, it is really too late," said Count Orlov, looking at the camp.

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John Dashwood, that not even her curiosity to see how she looked after the late discovery, nor her strong desire to affront her by taking Edward's part, could overcome her unwillingness to be in her company again.

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He shuddered as he thought of the irreparable wrong that his love would have done the innocent child but for the chance that had snatched her from him before it was too late. Doubtless she knew now the horror that had been in his mind.

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"I inclose, as you desire, a copy of the Will executed by your late husband on the third of this month.

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While I've been putting off and putting off, the trees have been growing--it's too late now.

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This Nome was not unlike the others that Dorothy had seen, but he wore a heavy gold chain around his neck to show that he was the Chief Steward of the Nome King, and he assumed an air of much importance, and even told his majesty not to eat too much cake late at night, or he would be ill.

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She complained that Edna had neglected her much of late. Besides, she was consumed with curiosity to see the little house and the manner in which it was conducted.

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It is growing late, and I have to reach home without suspicion of having been on such an errand as this.

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"But it's nearly time for the show to start, and we don't want to be late. I have tickets."

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