English · Word Candidate

late

/leɪt/

Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Also seen as: latest · lates

Sense 1

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

Near the end of a period of time.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

gần cuối một khoảng thời gian

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Adjective

Examples

The seedlings appeared to be coming along nicely until a late frost killed them.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 2

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

Specifically, near the end of the day.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Gần cuối ngày

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Adjective

Examples

It was getting late and I was tired.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 3

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

A shift (scheduled work period) that takes place late in the day or at night.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Ca làm việc vào cuối ngày hoặc đêm

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

NounRegister: informal

Examples

At about 11 pm one night in Corporation Street my watch were on van patrol and Yellow Watch were on late as usual.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 4

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

After a deadline has passed, past a designated time.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Quá hạn định

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Adverb

Examples

We drove as fast as we could, but we still arrived late.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Common questions

What does “late” mean?

Near the end of a period of time.

Is “late” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.