belated

adjective

be·lat·ed bi-ˈlā-təd

bē-

Synonyms of belated next

: delayed beyond the usual time

One of the men was belated and did not join us at all.—

William Pittenger

: existing or appearing past the normal or proper time

a belated birthday card

She received belated recognition for her work.

belatedly adverb

belatedness noun

Did you know?

Don't worry about being late to the party if you don't know the history of belated; you're right on time. Long ago, there was a verb belate, which meant "to make late." From the beginning, belate tended to mostly turn up in the form of its past participle, belated. When used as an adjective, belated originally meant "overtaken by night," as in "belated travelers seeking lodging for the night." This sense did not overstay its welcome; it was eventually overtaken by the "delayed" meaning we know today. As you may have guessed, belate and its descendant belated derive from the adjective late; belate was formed by simply combining the prefix be- ("to cause to be") with late.

Examples of belated in a Sentence

She received belated recognition for her scientific discovery.

Recent Examples on the Web

These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

The Setting Sun The death of Queen Elizabeth II marked, in a belated way, the demise of empire. —

Fintan O’Toole, Foreign Affairs, 21 Feb. 2023 But a belated, uninspiring improvement is an improvement nonetheless. —

Andrew Cunningham, Ars Technica, 2 Feb. 2024 The belated and awkward actions of the tech giant further damaged the company’s profile at time when China’s regulators were mounting a multi-pronged assault on the activities and business practices of the country’s leading tech firms. —

Patrick Frater, Variety, 23 June 2022 At the same time, they were hardly shocked at Ye’s belated attempt to seize control of the project. —

Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 1 Feb. 2022 See all Example Sentences for belated