lately

adverb

late·​ly ˈlāt-lē How to pronounce lately (audio)
Synonyms of latelynext
: of late : recently
has been friendlier lately

Synonyms of lately

Relevance
See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of lately in a Sentence

He has been feeling better lately. Lately, she has been worrying about her son.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
However, the institution’s financials have lately been called into question. — News Desk, Artforum, 28 Aug. 2026 But anyone who’s spent September in New York, Florida, Chicago or pretty much anywhere lately knows the calendar saying summer is over doesn’t mean the heat and humidity got the memo. — Mickey Williams, Flow Space, 28 Aug. 2026 Looking back, the designer—who has been listening to a lot of Madonna lately—finds an unlikely analogy in an interview with the singer. — David Foxley, Architectural Digest, 27 Aug. 2026 Luckily for us, the A-list has supplied plenty of inspiration lately. — Alyssa Rotunno, InStyle, 27 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for lately

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of lately was in the 15th century

Phrases Containing lately

Rhymes for lately

See All Rhymes for lately

Browse Nearby Words

Late Latin
lately
late-magmatic
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Lately.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lately. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

lately

adverb
late·​ly ˈlāt-lē How to pronounce lately (audio)
: not long ago
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Why does English have so many silent letters?

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All