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latter

 - 5 dictionary results

lat⋅ter

  [lat-er]
–adjective
1. being the second mentioned of two (distinguished from former ): I prefer the latter offer to the former one.
2. more advanced in time; later: in these latter days of human progress.
3. near or comparatively near to the end: the latter part of the century.
4. Obsolete. last; final.
Use latter in a Sentence
Origin:
bef. 1000; ME latt(e)re, OE lætra, comp. of læt late

late

  [leyt] adjective, lat⋅er or lat⋅ter, lat⋅est or last, adverb lat⋅er, lat⋅est.
–adjective
1. occurring, coming, or being after the usual or proper time: late frosts; a late spring.
2. continued until after the usual time or hour; protracted: a late business meeting.
3. near or at the end of day or well into the night: a late hour.
4. belonging to the time just before the present moment; most recent: a late news bulletin.
5. immediately preceding the present one; former: 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.
–adverb
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, period, or stage: The flowers keep their blossoms late in warm climates.
12. recently but no longer: a man late of Chicago, now living in Philadelphia.
—Idiom
13. of late, lately; recently: The days have been getting warmer of late.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME; OE læt slow, late; c. G lass slothful, ON latr, Goth lats slow, lazy, L lassus tired

Related forms:
lateness, noun

Synonyms:
1. tardy; slow, dilatory; delayed, belated. 4. See modern.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To latter
lat·ter   (lāt'ər)   
adj.  

  1. Being the second of two persons or things mentioned: Between captain and major, the latter is the higher rank. See Usage Note at former2.

  2. Near or nearer to the end: the latter part of the book.

  3. Further advanced in time or sequence; later: a style that has been revived in latter times.


[Middle English, later, from Old English lætra; see lē- in Indo-European roots.]
lat'ter·ly adv.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

late  (adj.)
O.E. læt "occurring after the customary or expected time," originally "slow, sluggish," from P.Gmc. *latas (cf. O.N. latr "sluggish, lazy," M.Du., O.S. lat, Ger. laß "idle, weary," Goth. lats "weary, sluggish, lazy," latjan "to hinder"), from PIE base *lad- "slow, weary" (cf. L. lassus "faint, weary, languid, exhausted," Gk. ledein "to be weary"). The sense of "deceased" (as in the late Mrs. Smith) is from 1490, from an adv. sense of "recently." Of women's menstrual periods, attested colloquially from 1962. Later "farewell" attested from 1954 in U.S. slang, short for see you later.

latter 
O.E. lætra "slower," comp. of læt "late" (see late (adj.)). Sense of "second of two" first recorded 1555. The modern later is a formation from c.1450.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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