English Reference

00 / Grammar and structure

late vs lately

Late describes something happening after the expected time, while lately describes something that has happened recently.

01 / Side by side

  • late

    after the expected or usual time

    The train was ten minutes late because of the heavy snow.

  • lately

    in the recent period of time

    She has been working very long hours at the office lately.

02 / Watch out

  • Wrong: The bus arrived lately today.Right: The bus arrived late today.

  • Wrong: I haven't seen him late.Right: I haven't seen him lately.

03 / Remember

Late is about the clock; lately is about the calendar.

04 / Quick check

Fill the gap with one of the two options.

  1. 1.

    Have you seen any good movies at the cinema ?

  2. 2.

    I have been using a new fitness app to track my morning runs through the city.

  3. 3.

    Many residents have noticed that the weather in this region has been unusually warm and dry .

  4. 4.

    I apologize for being to the meeting this morning.

  5. 5.

    The remote team meeting started ten minutes because the video call software needed a sudden update.

05 / More like this

All Grammar and structure sets →