Yahoo Web Search

Search results

  1. Dictionary
    Better late than never
    • it is better to do something or arrive after the expected time than not do it or arrive at all

    Powered by Oxford Languages

  2. People also ask

  3. BETTER LATE THAN NEVER definition: 1. said when you think that it is better for someone or something to be late than never to arrive…. Learn more.

    • English (US)

      BETTER LATE THAN NEVER meaning: 1. said when you think that...

    • Polski

      better late than never definicja: 1. said when you think...

  4. To arrive or do something later than expected isn't good, but it is better than not at all. What's the origin of the phrase 'Better late than never'? This proverb is often expressed with a degree of sarcasm, apparently saying something positive but in fact merely remarking on someone's lateness.

  5. 5 days ago · better late than never. convention. If you say better late than never when someone has done something, you think they should have done it earlier . It's been a long time coming but better late than never. See full dictionary entry for late.

  6. What’s the Meaning of Better Late Than Never? When you say “better late than never,” you’re actually saying a proverb that means its better to do something late than to not do it at all. It’s a reminder that it’s never too late to take action or make a change.

    • Author
    • Meaning | Synonyms
    • Example Sentence
    • Origin
    it is better for somebody or something to be late than never to arrive or to happen
    it is better to do something late than to not/never do it at all
    it is better to arrive late to an event than not to show up
    All of us have been waiting for you for two hours – but better late than never.
    I know that it took me weeks to send the letter, but better late than never.
    It took me three years to complete the training course but better late than never, right?
    He showed up for the wedding when they were already cutting the cake. Better late than never, I suppose.

    The proverb was first recorded in 1200. It appeared in several collections of English proverbs. The first time the phrase appears in print in English was in “The Yeoman’s Tale from The Canterbury Tales” by Geoffrey Chaucer published in 1386. The Latin phrase ‘potiusque sero quam numquam’which translates as “better late than never” was used in Histo...

  7. Being tardy is better than not at all, as in We've been waiting for you for an hourbut better late than never. This phrase, first recorded about 1200, appears in several early English proverb collections, often with the added but better never late. Today it is often used in exasperation over a delay, as in the example.

  8. The delayed occurrence or achievement of something that one desires is better than it not happening at all. Often used to acknowledge (perhaps begrudgingly) that something has finally occurred. After two weeks, I finally got a return phone call from that company. Better late than never, I guess.

  1. People also search for