Late for work vs Late at work

[Cho Yung]

English Grammar Tests, Elementary Level

ESL/EFL Test #91 "Using Prepositions", question 1

Ralph was late ......... work again. He may be fired.

(a) on
(b) at
(c) for
(d) to

English Grammar Tests, Elementary Level

ESL/EFL Test #91 "Using Prepositions", answer 1

Ralph was late for work again. He may be fired.

Correct answer: (c) for

Your answer was: incorrect
Ralph was late at work again. He may be fired.
_________________________

why is it the preposition "for" is incorrect in this sentence?

Cho Yung

[Alan]

Hi,

'Late for work' suggests late in attending/coming to work.

Alan
_________________
English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Present Simple

[Joydaniel2000]

please explain why it is NOT late at work

[Gsheasha]

I think late at work means he is late in doing something at workplace
but late for work means he is late for attending work.

This what I think. I hope I am right.
Thanks

[EdinburghLanguageAcademy]

Hello,
The meaning is that he arrived late (for example, his work starts at 9am and he arrived at 9.15am). You must say 'late for work'.
'At' is not correct.
You can say he arrived 'at work' at 9.15. This means he arrived 'at' the building.
But when we are late, it is not about the building - it is about the job itself, so 'for' is what we use in this context (we are late 'for'' something).
I hope this helps!