Johnny-come-lately
Late to arrive
A Johnny-come-lately is someone who arrives late to a trend, movement, or opportunity—often with the implication that they lack the experience or credibility of those who came earlier.
The term carries mild derision: These Johnny-come-latelies think they invented the genre.
It can also describe something recently arrived or developed: a Johnny-come-lately technology trying to compete with established platforms.
Inexperienced beginner
- rookieInexperienced newcomer
- noviceInexperienced newcomer to field
- greenhornInexperienced, gullible newcomer
- fledglingInexperienced newcomer
tyro · newbie · beginner · tenderfoot · initiate · recruit · trainee · apprentice
Surging popular cause
- eleventh-hourAt the latest possible moment
- last-minuteJust before deadline
- belatedArriving after expected
- delayedMade to wait longer
tardy · straggler · tail-ender · afterthought · latecomer · rear
Graceless new-money type
- arrivisteAmbitious social newcomer
- whippersnapperPresumptuous young person
- pretenderIllegitimate claimant to power
- interloperOne who enters uninvited
gate-crasher · ambitious · striver · up-and-comer · climber · opportunist · usurper · intruder
neophyte
Inexperienced beginner
- rookieInexperienced newcomer
- noviceInexperienced newcomer to field
- greenhornInexperienced, gullible newcomer
fledgling · tyro · newbie · beginner · tenderfoot · initiate · recruit · trainee · apprentice · uninitiated
bandwagon
Surging popular cause
- eleventh-hourAt the latest possible moment
- last-minuteJust before deadline
- belatedArriving after expected
delayed · tardy · straggler · tail-ender · afterthought · latecomer · rear
parvenu
Graceless new-money type
- arrivisteAmbitious social newcomer
- whippersnapperPresumptuous young person
- pretenderIllegitimate claimant to power
interloper · gate-crasher · ambitious · striver · up-and-comer · climber · opportunist · usurper · intruder · impostor
Johnny-come-latelytraditionalist
Adherent to established customs
conservative · old school · stick-in-the-mud · dinosaur · fossil
Johnny-come-latelyinsider
One with confidential access
native · original · old boy · pillar of the community · true believer