INDEX:
1. at a later time
2. to arrange to do something at a later time
3. in a later place in a book, list etc
RELATED WORDS
opposite
↑ IMMEDIATELY
see also
↑ AFTER
↑ FUTURE
↑ EARLY
↑ SOON
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1. at a later time
▷ later /ˈleɪtəʳ/ [adverb]
not now, or not at the time you are talking about, but some time after this :
▪ Sorry, I’m busy right now - I’ll speak to you later.
▪ We heard later that he had gone back to Japan.
a month/two weeks/three years etc later
▪ She became ill in 1993, and died two years later.
much later
a long time after that time
▪ I didn’t find out the truth until much later.
later that day/month/year etc
▪ Later that afternoon, Anna came to see me.
later in the day/month/year etc
▪ We are developing a training course to run later in the year.
later [adjective only before noun]
▪ Dixon pleaded guilty to all the charges and will be sentenced at a later date.
▪ In a later speech, the minister admitted he had been wrong.
▷ later on /ˌleɪtər ˈɒn/ [adverb]
at a later time during the same period or activity :
▪ Label the pipes you will be working on to avoid confusion later on.
▪ Later on, I’ll be interviewing the Prime Minister, but first here is a summary of the news.
▷ in /ɪn/ [preposition]
use this to say how far ahead in the future something will happen :
in a minute/24 hours/a week etc
▪ I’ll be back in a couple of days.
▪ The doctor would like to see you again in two weeks.
in an hour’s time/a few minutes’ time etc
▪ Just think, in a few hours’ time we’ll be in Seattle.
▷ from now /frəm ˈnaʊ/ [adverb]
24 hours/a week/100 years etc from now
24 hours, a week etc after this time :
▪ Three weeks from now the exams will be over.
▪ A hundred years from now there may be no rainforest left.
▷ after /ˈɑːftəʳǁˈæf-/ [preposition]
use this to talk about something that happened in the past, and to say how much later than a particular time or point it happened :
after two days/a week etc
▪ After a few minutes, she fell asleep.
▪ After ten days, their supplies of water were running low.
after a while/a bit
after some time
▪ After a while, we got tired of waiting and went home.
▷ subsequently /ˈsʌbsɪkwəntli, ˈsʌbsəkwəntli/ [adverb] formal
after the time or event that you are talking about :
▪ The decision was subsequently reversed on appeal.
▪ He was savagely attacked and sustained severe injuries from which he subsequently died.
2. to arrange to do something at a later time
▷ postpone /pəʊsˈpəʊn/ [transitive verb]
to change the time when something was planned to happen, and arrange for it to happen later :
▪ Several of today’s football games have been postponed because of heavy snow.
postpone something until/till something
▪ They decided to postpone the wedding until Pam’s mother was out of the hospital.
postpone something for two days/three weeks etc
▪ In 1968, the Oscar ceremony was postponed for two days, following the assassination of Martin Luther King.
▷ put off /ˌpʊt ˈɒf/ [transitive phrasal verb]
to decide to do something later than you planned to do it or should do it, for example because there is a problem or because you do not want to do it now :
put something off/put off something
▪ I really should go to the dentist, but I keep putting it off.
put something off until/till something
▪ The concert’s been put off till next week.
put off doing something
▪ The committee decided to put off making any decision until the new year.
▷ delay /dɪˈleɪ/ [transitive verb]
to not do something until something else has happened or until a more suitable time :
delay something until something
▪ He decided to delay his departure until after he’d seen the Director.
delay doing something
▪ The police delayed making any announcement until the girl’s relatives had been contacted.
▷ be pushed/moved/put back /biː ˌpʊʃt, ˌmuːvd, pʊt ˈbæk/ [verb phrase]
if an event is pushed back, someone arranges for it to be held at a later time or date than originally planned :
be pushed/moved/put back to
▪ The meeting has been put back to next Thursday.
▷ put something on ice/put something on the back burner /ˌpʊt something ɒn ˈaɪs, ˌpʊt something ɒn ðə ˌbæk ˈbɜːʳnəʳ/ [verb phrase]
to decide to do or deal with something at a later time, especially because there is a problem or because you have more important things to deal with immediately :
▪ We’re going to have to put our plans on ice until we can raise some more money.
▪ I’ve put my acting career on the back burner for a while, while I concentrate on my writing.
▷ procrastinate /prəˈkræstɪneɪt, prəˈkræstəneɪt/ [intransitive verb]
to delay doing something that you ought to do, usually because you do not want to do it - used especially to show disapproval :
▪ He hesitated and procrastinated for weeks before he finally told her he wanted their relationship to end.
procrastinate about/over
▪ Certain players are procrastinating over their contracts in order to see how much money they can squeeze out of their clubs.
procrastination /prəˌkræstɪˈneɪʃ ə n, prəˌkræstəˈneɪʃ ə n/ [uncountable noun]
▪ She finally agreed to take the job after months of procrastination.
3. in a later place in a book, list etc
▷ later /ˈleɪtəʳ/ [adverb]
in a part of a book, list, or document that comes after the point where you are now :
▪ Later in the poem there is a reference to the poet’s unhappy childhood.
later [adjective only before noun]
▪ The author returns to the same subject in a later section of the book.
▪ I will explain how to deal with this problem in a later chapter.
▷ later/further on /ˌleɪtər, ˌfɜːʳðər ˈɒn/ [adverb]
in a later part of a book, list, or document :
▪ Later on in the article he repeats this statement.
▪ Further on in the book we find a full description of the system.