late
adj.adj. arriving or happening after the expected time. You use this when you miss a deadline or show up after a meeting has started.
adj. occurring, arriving, or happening after the scheduled, expected, or usual time. Often used in a predicative position after a linking verb.
I am sorry for being late to the meeting.
The train was ten minutes late due to heavy snow on the tracks this morning.
Despite the logistical hurdles and the late hour of the arrival, the team managed to secure the perimeter before the storm intensified.
From Middle English late, lat, from Old English læt (“slow; slack, lax, negligent; late”), from Proto-West Germanic lat, from Proto-Germanic lataz (“slow, lazy”). By surface analysis, deverbal from let. Cognates Cognate with Yola laate (“late”), North Frisian leed, leet, lääs (“late”), Saterland Frisian leet (“late”), Dutch, German Low German laat (“late, tardy”), Danish lad (“languid, lazy, indolent”), Faroese, Icelandic latur (“lazy”), Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk and Swedish lat (“lazy”), Gothic 𐌻𐌰𐍄𐍃 (lats, “lazy, slothful”).
Commonly used with the preposition 'for' when referring to an event or appointment.
I am lately for workI am late for workLately is an adverb meaning 'recently'; late is the correct adjective for being behind schedule.