laten

See also: latén and låten

English

Etymology

From late + -en.

Verb

laten (third-person singular simple present latens, present participle latening, simple past and past participle latened)

1. (intransitive) To grow late; become later.
   • 1928, Siegfried Sassoon, The Complete Memoirs of George Sherston: Memoirs of a Fox-Hunting Man, London: Faber and Faber, page 142 (Faber Paper 1972 edition):

     The afternoon was latening, but there was, I think, a quietly commemorative glow from the west.

   • 1930, Alec Waugh, Three Score and Ten, page 3:

     Not even when the hour latened, when the courts became filled with boys returning from their holidays, when the moment for saying "Good-bye" was only a few minutes distant, not even then did his high spirits leave him.

   • 2011, Catherine Winchester, Northern Light:

     Then he returned to Margaret's side and sat with her for the rest of the evening, insisting that she rest. As the hour latened he kissed her on the cheek and got up to leave.

Anagrams

• Antle, ental, leant

Dutch

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈlaːtə(n)/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: la‧ten
• Rhymes: -aːtən

Etymology 1

From Middle Dutch laten, from Old Dutch lātan, from Proto-West Germanic *lātan, from Proto-Germanic *lētaną.

Verb

laten

1. (copulative) to leave, to cause to remain in the same position or state

   Ze lieten het zo. ― They left it like that.

2. (auxiliary, with object) to leave, to allow to remain/continue to

   Laat dat daar maar liggen. ― Just leave it lying there.

3. (auxiliary, with object) to let, to allow to

   Ze lieten hem gaan. ― They let him go.

4. (auxiliary, with object) to cause to, to make; creates a causative phrase.

   Hij liet zijn spullen op de grond vallen. ― He dropped his stuff on the ground.

   Laat me weten hoe laat je thuiskomt. ― Let me know at what time you'll come home.

5. (auxiliary, with object) to may, to let; forms an optative phrase.

   Laat er licht zijn. ― Let there be light.

6. (auxiliary, with object) to may, to let; forms a cohortative phrase.

   Laten ze een kuil graven. ― May they dig a hole.

   Laten we naar de bioscoop gaan! ― Let′s go to the cinema!

7. (transitive) to not do, to refrain from

   Laat dat! ― Don't do that!

   Niemand vertelt mij wat ik moet doen of laten. ― Nobody tells me what to do or not to do.

8. (transitive, Suriname, colloquial) to leave someone, to end a romantic relationship
   • 2019, A Sa Go, Mie Na Swit Kontretjie:

     Maar Clyde luister, luister, ik heb je je vrouw niet laten laten.

     But Clyde, listen, listen, I didn't make you leave your wife.

Conjugation

Conjugation of laten (strong class 7)
infinitive	laten
past singular	liet
past participle	gelaten
infinitive	laten
gerund	laten n
	present tense	past tense
1st person singular	laat	liet
2nd person sing. (jij)	laat	liet
2nd person sing. (u)	laat	liet
2nd person sing. (gij)	laat	liet
3rd person singular	laat	liet
plural	laten	lieten
subjunctive sing.1	late	liete
subjunctive plur.1	laten	lieten
imperative sing.	laat
imperative plur.1	laat
participles	latend	gelaten
1) Archaic.

Derived terms

nouns

• doen en laten
• laatkoers
• laatprijs

verbs

• aaneenlaten
• aanlaten
• achterlaten
• achternalaten
• aflaten
• belaten
• bijeenlaten
• bijlaten
• binnenlaten
• blootlaten
• bovenlaten
• buitenlaten
• de kaas niet van het brood laten eten
• dichtlaten
• doodlaten
• doorlaten
• gelaten
• Gods water over Gods akker laten lopen
• het achterste van zijn tong laten zien
• in het midden laten
• inlaten
• koud laten
• laten kennen
• laten varen
• leeglaten
• links laten liggen
• loslaten
• nalaten
• nederlaten
• neerlaten
• omlaten
• onderlaten
• ontlaten
• op zijn beloop laten
• openlaten
• oplaten
• overlaten
• samenlaten
• Siberisch laten
• teruglaten
• thuislaten
• toelaten
• tussenlaten
• uiteenlaten
• uitlaten
• vastlaten
• verlaten
• voorbijlaten
• voorlaten
• voortlaten
• vrijlaten
• weglaten

Descendants

• Afrikaans: laat
• Berbice Creole Dutch: latn
• Jersey Dutch: lâte
• Skepi Creole Dutch: at

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Noun

laten

1. plural of laat (“serf”)

Anagrams

• talen

Galician

Verb

laten

1. inflection of latar:
   1. third-person plural present subjunctive
   2. third-person plural imperative
2. third-person plural present indicative of latir

Indonesian

Etymology

Borrowed from Dutch latent (“latent”), from French latent (“latent”), from Latin latentem, present participle of lateo (“lie hidden”).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Indonesian) IPA^(key): /ˈlatɛn/ [ˈla.t̪ɛn]
• Rhymes: -atɛn
• Syllabification: la‧ten

Adjective

laten (comparative lebih laten, superlative paling laten)

1. latent

Further reading

• “laten”, in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia [Great Dictionary of the Indonesian Language] (in Indonesian), Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016

Low German

Etymology

From Old Saxon lātan, from Proto-West Germanic *lātan, from Proto-Germanic *lētaną, from Proto-Indo-European *leh₁d-.

Verb

laten (past singular leet, past participle laten, auxiliary verb hebben)

1. (auxiliary, with an infinitive) to allow; to permit; to let
2. (auxiliary, with an infinitive) to have someone (do something); to have (something done); to make (something happen); to cause (something to be done)

   wat maken laten ― to have something done

   een wat doon laten ― to have someone do something

3. (transitive) to let; to leave
4. (transitive) to stop (something); to quit; to refrain from; to help doing (something)
5. (intransitive) to cease; to desist

Conjugation

Conjugation of laten (class 7 strong verb)

infinitive	laten
	present	preterite
1st person singular	laat	leet
2nd person singular	lettst	leetst
3rd person singular	lett	leet
plural	laat	leten
	imperative
singular	laat
plural	laat
	present	past
participle	laten	laten

Note: This conjugation is one of many.
Neither its grammar nor spelling apply to all dialects.

Middle Dutch

Etymology

From Old Dutch lātan, from Proto-West Germanic *lātan, from Proto-Germanic *lētaną.

Verb

lâten

1. to leave, to cause to remain in the same position or state
2. to release
3. to let, to lose (of bodily fluids)
4. to leave, to let remain, to leave behind
5. to leave, to depart from
6. to not do, to refrain from
7. to stop doing, to cease doing
8. (auxiliary) to allow, to not prevent
9. (auxiliary) to cause to, to make

Inflection

Conjugation of lâten (strong class 7)

infinitive	base form	lâten
	genitive	lâtens
	dative	lâtene
		indicative			subjunctive
		present	past		present	past
1st person singular		lâte	liet		lâte	liete
2nd person singular		lâets, lâtes	liets, lietes		lâets, lâtes	lietes
3rd person singular		lâet, lâtet	liet		lâte	liete
1st person plural		lâten	lieten		lâten	lieten
2nd person plural		lâet, lâtet	liet, lietet		lâet, lâtet	lietet
3rd person plural		lâten	lieten		lâten	lieten
		imperative
singular		lâet, lâte
plural		lâet, lâtet
		present	past
participle		lâtende	gelâten

Descendants

• Dutch: laten
  • Afrikaans: laat
  • Berbice Creole Dutch: latn
  • Jersey Dutch: lâte
  • Skepi Creole Dutch: at
• Limburgish: laote

Further reading

• “laten”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
• Verwijs, E.; Verdam, J. (1885–1929), “laten (I)”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN, page I

Middle English

Etymology 1

Proper noun

laten

1. alternative form of Latyn

Etymology 2

Noun

laten

1. alternative form of latoun

Spanish

Verb

laten

1. third-person plural present indicative of latir

Swedish

Noun

laten

1. definite singular of lat

Anagrams

• ental, talen