bə̇ˈlād.ə̇d, bē-, -ātə̇d adjective
1. archaic : overtaken by night : benighted
2.
a. : delayed beyond the usual time
one of the men was belated and did not join us at all — B.A.Botkin & A.F.Harlow
b. : staying, existing, or appearing past the normal time or season
nothing but an occasional rabbit and a belated heron — John Buchan
c. : out-of-date , passé
his policies are now quite belated
• be·lat·ed·ly adverb
• be·lat·ed·ness noun -es