Phrase guide

too little, too late

phrase · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

phrase

Meaning 1

Used as a predicate or a pro-sentence to indicate insufficiency.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic

Examples

  • That's just half what was due last week. Too little, too late.
  • Committing half his reserves nearly three hours after the attack was too little, too late.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

12 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Mandarin: 太少,太遲 /太少 — Translations
  • Chinese Mandarin: 太迟 (tài shǎo, tài chí) — Translations
  • Finnish: liian vähän, liian myöhään — Translations
  • German: zu spät und zu wenig — Translations
  • German: zwar verspätet, dafür aber nur halb — Translations
  • Hebrew: מעט מדי, מאוחר מדי (m'át midái, m'ukhár midái) — Translations
  • Italian: troppo poco, troppo tardi — Translations
  • Polish: rychło w czas — Translations
  • Polish: poniewczasie — Translations
  • Portuguese: muito pouco, muito tarde — Translations
  • Spanish: demasiado poco y demasiado tarde — Translations
  • Spanish: "tarde, mal y nunca" — Translations