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late 1 of 2

Definition of latenext
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as in former
having been such at some previous time the late musical director said he would never have allowed such behavior while he was in charge

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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late

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adverb

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective late contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of late are dead, deceased, defunct, and departed. While all these words mean "devoid of life," late is used especially with reference to a person in a specific relation or status.

the company's late president

In what contexts can dead take the place of late?

In some situations, the words dead and late are roughly equivalent. However, 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

How is deceased related to other words for late?

Deceased, departed, and late apply to persons who have died recently. Deceased is the preferred term in legal use.

the estate of the deceased

When is defunct a more appropriate choice than late?

The synonyms defunct and late are sometimes interchangeable, but defunct stresses cessation of active existence or operation.

a defunct television series

When could departed be used to replace late?

Although the words departed and late have much in common, departed is used usually as a euphemism.

our departed sister

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of late
Adjective
According to surveillance video, the large bear has been wedging itself in and out of a small crawl space beneath Ken Johnson’s house since late November. Bonny Chu, FOXNews.com, 9 Jan. 2026 The company also went public in late 2025. Ashley Portillo, CBS News, 9 Jan. 2026
Adverb
Meta’s purchases under the agreements will begin late this year, with additional capacity added to the grid through 2034, when the full 2,609 MW of power from Vistra will be online. Lana Ferguson, Dallas Morning News, 9 Jan. 2026 Moscow claims this attack was a response to the targeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s residence late last year. Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 9 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for late
Recent Examples of Synonyms for late
Adjective
  • And when sunrise was artificially delayed by three hours, the rate of the finches' singing intensified and commenced sooner compared with non-delayed sunrises.
    Michele Laufik, Martha Stewart, 31 Dec. 2025
  • Identity data from incidents like this is frequently reused later for delayed fraud.
    Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 20 Dec. 2025
Adjective
  • Jack McGregor, a former state senator and the original founder of the Pittsburgh Penguins, died at the age of 91 on Tuesday.
    Michael Guise, CBS News, 9 Jan. 2026
  • Notable alumni Plenty of former Canes players were on the sidelines pregame Thursday.
    Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 9 Jan. 2026
Adjective
  • The Uxbridge, Massachusetts police department announced that the wake and funeral for fallen officer Stephen LaPorta will be held next week.
    Riley Rourke, CBS News, 9 Jan. 2026
  • Luckily, fallen snow can act as natural insulation and actually provide some shelter from freezing temperatures.
    Andrea Beck, Better Homes & Gardens, 9 Jan. 2026
Adjective
  • When emergencies result in a premature birth or a baby with medical complications, immediate access to advanced neonatal care is critical.
    MemorialCare Medical Group, Oc Register, 10 Jan. 2026
  • Safety through advanced technology Safety remains the primary concern for any personal aircraft, and Plaut addresses this through extreme hardware redundancy.
    Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 10 Jan. 2026
Adverb
  • The Grateful Dead disbanded in 1995 following the death of Garcia, and 20 years later, Weir came together with drummers Bill Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart, and musician John Mayer to form Dead & Company, touring with them from 2015 to 2018.
    Brie Stimson, FOXNews.com, 11 Jan. 2026
  • She was rushed to a nearby hospital, where she was later pronounced dead.
    Dean Fioresi, CBS News, 11 Jan. 2026
Adverb
  • She’s been obsessed with slavery lately.
    Andy Hoglund, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Nov. 2025
  • The Bills have owned the Dolphins lately (if not quite the NFL, or now, even the AFC East).
    Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 9 Nov. 2025
Adjective
  • That’s true historically — Netflix ran a 10K on streaming before Disney could lace up its sneakers, prompting a mad belated frenzy from the Burbank firm to get its own service up and running more than a decade later, in 2019.
    Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 12 Dec. 2025
  • China, meanwhile, is living with the long shadow of its one-child policy, which was eased to a two-child rule in 2016 and then to a three-child policy in 2021 in a belated push to boost births.
    Micah McCartney, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • Brake gently as needed - Brake normally if the vehicle has anti-lock brakes and pump brakes gently if in an older vehicle.
    NC Weather Bot, Charlotte Observer, 10 Jan. 2026
  • Come late January or early February, Denver could be down its defensive coordinator, a whiz-kid offensive mind, and a slightly older whiz-kid defensive mind.
    Luca Evans, Denver Post, 10 Jan. 2026

Cite this Entry

“Late.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/late. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.

More from Merriam-Webster on late

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