EN

Synonyms for belated

  • adjective

Most common

late tardy overdue behind-hand benighted backward

Synonyms by meaning

Adjective

1. Tardy — later in relation to the proper time which something should have happened; specifically, delayed beyond the…

late, tardy, overdue, behind-hand, tardive, lated dated

2. Benighted — slow to learn or to adopt a trend; hence, lacking education or sophistication; benighted, unenlightened…

benighted, backward, retarded, uneducated

Other

unpunctual, nighted

Antonyms

timely, untimely, punctual

All antonyms of belated →

Definitions

  1. adj. 1

    Later in relation to the proper time which something should have happened; specifically, delayed beyond the proper time.

    A belated happy birthday to you!

  2. adj. 2

    Slow to learn or to adopt a trend; hence, lacking education or sophistication; benighted, unenlightened, unsophisticated.

Related words

Word family
belatedly belatedness

Example sentences

  • overdue This is a friendly reminder about an overdue invoice.
  • tardy They got the sack for being careless and tardy.
  • uneducated Tom is uneducated; he understands absolutely nothing.
  • unpunctual She doesn't like unpunctual people.

Popularity over time

Word1850 → 2019Trend
belatedsteady
overduefalling
tardysteady
tardiverising
uneducatedsteady
unpunctualsteady

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

By length

4 letters
late1
5 letters
tardy2, lated
7 letters
overdue3, tardive, nighted
8 letters
backward2, retarded3
9 letters
benighted3
10 letters
uneducated5, unpunctual

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (tardy2 = 2 syllables).