latter

latter
lat|ter [ `lætər ] function word ***
Latter can be used in the following ways:
as an adjective (only before a noun):
the latter half of 1996
He considered his students either geniuses or idiots, and I fell into the latter category.
as a pronoun (after the ):
Given a choice between Tahiti and Hawaii, I'd prefer the latter.
1. ) FORMAL used for referring to the second of two people, things, or groups that have just been mentioned:
He did well in both schoolwork and sports and won a number of medals in the latter (=in sports).
Two treaties were signed, in 1990 and 1998, but only the latter agreement was considered valid.
─ compare FORMER1
2. ) used for describing the later part of a period of time:
She maintained her interest in Latin during her latter years.
Total profit was $550 million in the latter half of 1998.

Usage of the words and phrases in modern English. 2013.

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Synonyms:

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  • latter — [ late ] v. tr. <conjug. : 1> • 1288; de latte ♦ Garnir de lattes. Latter un plafond. Latter à lattes jointives, à claire voie. ● latter verbe transitif Garnir quelque chose de lattes. latter v. tr. d1./d Garnir de lattes. d2./d Arg. Donner …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Latter — Lat ter, a. [OE. later, l[ae]tter, compar. of lat late. See {Late}, and cf. {Later}.] 1. Later; more recent; coming or happening after something else; opposed to {former}; as, the former and latter rain. [1913 Webster] 2. Of two things, the one… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • latter — Latter. v. a. Garnir de lattes. Cette maison est couverte, le comble est mis, il ne reste plus qu à latter, il la faut latter …   Dictionnaire de l'Académie française

  • latter — ► ADJECTIVE 1) nearer to the end than to the beginning. 2) recent: in latter years. 3) (the latter) denoting the second or second mentioned of two people or things. ORIGIN Old English, «slower»; related to LATE(Cf. ↑lateness) …   English terms dictionary

  • latter — [lat′ər] adj. [ME lattre < OE lættra, compar. of læt: it represents the orig. compar. form; LATER is a new formation] 1. alt. compar. of LATE 2. a) later; more recent b) nearer the end or close [the latter part of M …   English World dictionary

  • latter — index before mentioned, subsequent Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • latter — (adj.) O.E. lætra slower, comparative of læt late (see LATE (Cf. late) (adj.)). Sense of second of two first recorded 1550s. The modern LATER (Cf. later) is a formation from mid 15c …   Etymology dictionary

  • latter — [adj] latest, concluding closing, eventual, final, following, hindmost, lag, last, last mentioned, later, modern, rearmost, recent, second, terminal; concepts 585,799 Ant. earliest, former, preceding …   New thesaurus

  • latter — former, latter 1. These two words are used individually or contrastively (as the former and the latter) to refer to the first and second respectively of two people or things previously mentioned; in this role they are used attributively (before a …   Modern English usage

  • latter — 01. Whereas the former proposal is more costly, the [latter] one would take much more time. 02. Nervousness about Y2K computer problems grew considerably in the [latter] half of 1999. 03. My grandfather had always been very healthy, but his mind… …   Grammatical examples in English

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