Late Late adverb [ Anglo-Saxon late . See Late , adjective ] 1. After the usual or proper time, or the time appointed; after delay; as, he arrived late ; -- opposed to early .

2. Not long ago; lately.

3. Far in the night, day, week, or other particular period; as, to lie abed late ; to sit up late at night.

Of late , in time not long past, or near the present; lately; as, the practice is of late uncommon. -- Too late , after the proper or available time; when the time or opportunity is past.

Lated Lat"ed adjective Belated; too late. [ Obsolete] Shak.

Lateen La·teen" adjective (Nautical) Of or pertaining to a peculiar rig used in the Mediterranean and adjacent waters, esp. on the northern coast of Africa. See below.

Lateen sail . [ French voile latine a sail in the shape of a right-angled triangle; confer Italian & Spanish vela latina ; properly Latin sail. See Latin .] (Nautical) A triangular sail, extended by a long yard, which is slung at about one fourth of its length from the lower end, to a low mast, this end being brought down at the tack, while the other end is elevated at an angle or about forty-five degrees; -- used in small boats, feluccas, xebecs, etc., especially in the Mediterranean and adjacent waters. Some lateen sails have also a boom on the lower side.

Lately Late"ly adverb Not long ago; recently; as, he has lately arrived from Italy.

Latence La"tence noun Latency. Coleridge.

Latency La"ten·cy noun [ See Latent .] The state or quality of being latent.

To simplify the discussion, I shall distinguish three degrees of this latency .

Sir W. Hamilton.

Lateness Late"ness noun The state, condition, or quality, of being late; as, the lateness of his arrival; the lateness of the hour; the lateness of the season.

Latent La"tent (lā"t e nt) adjective [ Latin latens , -entis , present participle of latere to lie hid or concealed; confer Greek lanqa`nein , English lethargy : confer French latent .] Not visible or apparent; hidden; concealed; secret; dormant; as, latent springs of action.

The evils latent in the most promising contrivances are provided for as they arise.

Burke.

Latent buds (Botany) , buds which remain undeveloped or dormant for a long time, but may at length grow. Latent heat (Physics) , that quantity of heat which disappears or becomes concealed in a body while producing some change in it other than rise of temperature, as fusion, evaporation, or expansion, the quantity being constant for each particular body and for each species of change. -- Latent period . (a) (Medicine) The regular time in which a disease is supposed to be existing without manifesting itself . (b) (Physiol.) One of the phases in a simple muscular contraction, in which invisible preparatory changes are taking place in the nerve and muscle . (c) (Biol.) One of those periods or resting stages in the development of the ovum, in which development is arrested prior to renewed activity.

Latently La"tent·ly adverb In a secret or concealed manner; invisibly.

Later La"ter noun ; plural Lateres . [ Latin ] A brick or tile. Knight.

Later Lat"er adjective Compar. of Late , adjective & adverb

Laterad Lat"er·ad adverb [ Latin latus , lateris , side + ad to.] (Anat.) Toward the side; away from the mesial plane; -- opposed to mesiad .

Lateral Lat"er·al adjective [ Latin lateralis , from latus , lateris , side: confer French latéral .] 1. Of or pertaining to the sides; as, the lateral walls of a house; the lateral branches of a tree.

2. (Anat.) Lying at, or extending toward, the side; away from the mesial plane; external; -- opposed to mesial .

3. Directed to the side; as, a lateral view of a thing.

Lateral cleavage (Crystallog.) , cleavage parallel to the lateral planes. -- Lateral equation (Math.) , an equation of the first degree. [ Obsolete] -- Lateral line (Anat.) , in fishes, a line of sensory organs along either side of the body, often marked by a distinct line of color. -- Lateral pressure or stress (Mech.) , a pressure or stress at right angles to the length, as of a beam or bridge; -- distinguished from longitudinal pressure or stress . -- Lateral strength (Mech.) , strength which resists a tendency to fracture arising from lateral pressure. -- Lateral system (Bridge Building) , the system of horizontal braces (as between two vertical trusses) by which lateral stiffness is secured.

Laterality Lat`er·al"i·ty noun The state or condition of being lateral.

Laterally Lat"er·al·ly adverb By the side; sidewise; toward, or from, the side.

Lateran Lat"er·an noun The church and palace of St. John Lateran, the church being the cathedral church of Rome, and the highest in rank of all churches in the Catholic world.

» The name is said to have been derived from that of the Laterani family, who possessed a palace on or near the spot where the church now stands. In this church several ecclesiastical councils, hence called Lateran councils, have been held.

Latered Lat"ered adjective Inclined to delay; dilatory. [ Obsolete] "When a man is too latered ." Chaucer.

Laterifolious Lat`er·i·fo"li·ous adjective [ Latin latus , lateris , side + folium leaf: confer French latérifolié .] (Botany) Growing from the stem by the side of a leaf; as, a laterifolious flower.

Laterite Lat"er·ite noun [ Latin later brick, tile: confer French latérite .] (Geol.) An argillaceous sandstone, of a red color, and much seamed; -- found in India.

Lateritic Lat`er·it"ic adjective Consisting of, containing, or characterized by, laterite; as, lateritic formations.

Lateritious Lat"er·i"tious adjective [ Latin lateritius , from later a brick.] Like bricks; of the color of red bricks.

Lateritious sediment (Medicine) , a sediment in urine resembling brick dust, observed after the crises of fevers, and at the termination of gouty paroxysms. It usually consists of uric acid or urates with some coloring matter.

Lates La"tes noun [ New Latin , from Greek ... a fish of the Nile.] (Zoology) A genus of large percoid fishes, of which one species ( Lates Niloticus ) inhabits the Nile, and another ( Latin calcarifer ) is found in the Ganges and other Indian rivers. They are valued as food fishes.

Latescence La·tes"cence noun A slight withdrawal from view or knowledge. Sir W. Hamilton.

Latescent La·tes"cent adjective [ Latin latescens , -entis , present participle of latescere to be concealed, from latere to be hid.] Slightly withdrawn from view or knowledge; as, a latescent meaning. Sir W. Hamilton.

Latewake Late"wake` noun See Lich wake , under Lich .

Lateward Late"ward adjective & adverb Somewhat late; backward. [ Obsolete] " Lateward lands." Holland.

Latex La"tex noun [ Latin ] (Botany) A milky or colored juice in certain plants in cavities (called latex cells or latex tubes ). It contains the peculiar principles of the plants, whether aromatic, bitter, or acid, and in many instances yields caoutchouc upon coagulation.

Lath Lath noun ; plural Laths . [ Middle English laththe , latthe , latte , Anglo-Saxon lætta ; akin to Dutch lat , German latte , Old High German latta ; confer W. llath a rod, staff, yard. Confer Lattice , Latten .] A thin, narrow strip of wood, nailed to the rafters, studs, or floor beams of a building, for the purpose of supporting the tiles, plastering, etc. A corrugated metallic strip or plate is sometimes used.

Lath brick , a long, slender brick, used in making the floor on which malt is placed in the drying kiln. Lath nail a slender nail for fastening laths.

Lath Lath transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Lathed ; present participle & verbal noun Lathing .] To cover or line with laths.

Lath-shaped Lath"-shaped` adjective Having a slender elongated form, like a lath; -- said of the feldspar of certain igneous rocks, as diabase, as seen in microscopic sections.

Lathe Lathe noun [ Anglo-Saxon lǣð . Of. uncertain origin.] Formerly, a part or division of a county among the Anglo-Saxons. At present it consists of four or five hundreds, and is confined to the county of Kent. [ Written also lath .] Brande & C.

Lathe Lathe noun [ Middle English lathe a granary; akin to German lade a chest, Icelandic hlaða a storehouse, barn; but confer also Icelandic löð a smith's lathe. Senses 2 and 3 are perhaps of the same origin as lathe a granary, the original meaning being, a frame to hold something. If so, the word is from an older form of English lade to load. See Lade to load.] 1. A granary; a barn. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

2. (Machinery) A machine for turning, that is, for shaping articles of wood, metal, or other material, by causing them to revolve while acted upon by a cutting tool.

3. The movable swing frame of a loom, carrying the reed for separating the warp threads and beating up the weft; -- called also lay and batten .

Blanchard lathe , a lathe for turning irregular forms after a given pattern, as lasts, gunstocks, and the like. -- Drill lathe , or Speed lathe , a small lathe which, from its high speed, is adapted for drilling; a hand lathe. -- Engine lathe , a turning lathe in which the cutting tool has an automatic feed; -- used chiefly for turning and boring metals, cutting screws, etc. -- Foot lathe , a lathe which is driven by a treadle worked by the foot. -- Geometric lathe . See under Geometric -- Hand lathe , a lathe operated by hand; a power turning lathe without an automatic feed for the tool. -- Slide lathe , an engine lathe. -- Throw lathe , a small lathe worked by one hand, while the cutting tool is held in the other.

Lather Lath"er (lă&thlig;"ẽr) noun [ Anglo-Saxon leáðor niter, in leáðorwyrt soapwort; confer Icelandic lauðr ; perhaps akin to English lye .] 1. Foam or froth made by soap moistened with water.

2. Foam from profuse sweating, as of a horse.

Lather Lath"er transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Lathered ; present participle & verbal noun Lathering .] [ Anglo-Saxon lēðrian to lather, anoint. See Lather , noun ] To spread over with lather; as, to lather the face.

Lather Lath"er intransitive verb To form lather, or a froth like lather; to accumulate foam from profuse sweating, as a horse.

Lather Lath"er transitive verb [ Confer Leather .] To beat severely with a thong, strap, or the like; to flog. [ Low]

Lathereeve, Lathreeve Lathe"reeve`, Lath"reeve` noun Formerly, the head officer of a lathe. See 1st Lathe .

Lathing Lath"ing noun The act or process of covering with laths; laths, collectively; a covering of laths.

Lathwork Lath"work` noun Same as Lathing .

Lathy Lath"y adjective Like a lath; long and slender.

A lathy horse, all legs and length.

R. Browning.

Latian La"tian adjective Belonging, or relating, to Latium, a country of ancient Italy. See Latin .

Latibulize La·tib"u·lize intransitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Latibulized ; present participle & verbal noun Latibulizing .] [ Latin latibulum hiding place, from latere to lie hid.] To retire into a den, or hole, and lie dormant in winter; to retreat and lie hid. [ R.] G. Shaw.

Latibulum La·tib"u·lum noun ; plural Latibula . [ Latin ] A concealed hiding place; a burrow; a lair; a hole.

Laticiferous Lat`i·cif"er·ous adjective [ Latin latex , laticis , a liquid + -ferous .] (Botany) Containing the latex; -- applied to the tissue or tubular vessels in which the latex of the plant is found.

Laticlave Lat"i·clave noun [ Latin laticlavus , laticlavium ; latus broad + clavus nail, a purple stripe on the tunica: confer French laticlave .] (Rom. Antiq.) A broad stripe of purple on the fore part of the tunic, worn by senators in ancient Rome as an emblem of office.

Laticostate Lat`i·cos"tate adjective [ Latin latus broad + English costate .] Broad-ribbed.

Latidentate Lat`i·den"tate adjective [ Latin latus broad + English dentate .] Broad-toothed.

Latifoliate, Latifolious Lat`i·fo"li·ate, Lat`i·fo"li·ous adjective [ Latin latifolius ; latus broad + folium leaf: confer French latifolié .] (Botany) Having broad leaves.

Latigo La"ti·go noun [ Spanish látigo .] A strap for tightening a saddle girth. [ Western U. S. & Spanish Amer.]

Latigo halter La"ti·go hal"ter A kind of halter usually made of raw hide.

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