old
Americanadjective
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older,
comparative
-
elder,
comparative
-
oldest,
superlative
-
eldest
superlative
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far advanced in the years of one's or its life.
an old man;
an old horse;
an old tree.
- Antonyms:
- young
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of or relating to the latter part of the life or term of existence of a person or thing.
old age.
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as if or appearing to be far advanced in years.
Worry had made him old.
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having lived or existed for a specified time: a century-old organization.
a man 30 years old;
a century-old organization.
-
having lived or existed as specified with relation to younger or newer persons or things.
Jim is our oldest boy.
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having been aged for a specified time.
This whiskey is eight years old.
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having been aged for a comparatively long time.
old brandy.
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long known or in use.
the same old excuse.
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overfamiliar to the point of tedium.
Some jokes get old fast.
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belonging to the past.
the good old days.
-
having been in existence since the distant past.
a fine old family.
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no longer in general use.
Our dishwasher is an old model, so replacement parts are hard to find.
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acquired, made, or in use by one prior to the acquisition, making, or use of something more recent.
When the new house was built, we sold the old one.
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of, relating to, or originating at an earlier period or date.
old maps.
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former; having been so formerly.
I ran into my old piano teacher the other day.
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There may have been an old land bridge between Asia and Alaska.
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Old, (of a language) in its oldest known period, as attested by the earliest written records.
Old Czech.
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He's an old hand at welding.
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of long standing; having been such for a comparatively long time.
an old and trusted employee.
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(of colors) dull, faded, or subdued.
old rose.
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deteriorated through age or long use; worn, decayed, or dilapidated.
old clothes.
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Physical Geography. (of landforms) far advanced in reduction by erosion or the like.
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sedate, sensible, mature, or wise.
That child seems old beyond his years.
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(used to indicate affection, familiarity, disparagement, or a personalization): that dirty old jalopy.
good old Bob;
that dirty old jalopy.
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Informal. (used as an intensive) great; uncommon.
a high old time.
noun
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(used with a plural verb) Usually the old old persons collectively.
appropriations to care for the old.
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a person or animal of a specified age or age group (used in combination): a horse race for three-year-olds.
a class for six-year-olds;
a horse race for three-year-olds.
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old or former time, often time long past.
days of old.
adjective
-
having lived or existed for a relatively long time
an old man
an old tradition
old wine
an old house
an old country
-
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of or relating to advanced years or a long life
old age
-
( as collective noun; preceded by the )
the old
-
people of all ages
-
-
decrepit or senile
-
worn with age or use
old clothes
an old car
-
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(postpositive) having lived or existed for a specified period
a child who is six years old
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( in combination )
a six-year-old child
-
( as noun in combination )
a six-year-old
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(capital when part of a name or title) earlier or earliest of two or more things with the same name
the old edition
the Old Testament
old Norwich
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(capital when part of a name) designating the form of a language in which the earliest known records are written
Old English
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(prenominal) familiar through long acquaintance or repetition
an old friend
an old excuse
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practised; hardened
old in cunning
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cherished; dear: used as a term of affection or familiarity
good old George
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informal (with any of several nouns) used as a familiar form of address to a person
old thing
old bean
old stick
old fellow
-
skilled through long experience (esp in the phrase an old hand )
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out-of-date; unfashionable
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remote or distant in origin or time of origin
an old culture
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(prenominal) former; previous
my old house was small
-
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(prenominal) established for a relatively long time
an old member
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( in combination )
old-established
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sensible, wise, or mature
old beyond one's years
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(of a river, valley, or land surface) in the final stage of the cycle of erosion, characterized by flat extensive flood plains and minimum relief See also youthful mature
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(intensifier) (esp in phrases such as a good old time, any old thing, any old how, etc)
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(of crops) harvested late
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an earlier period of time regarded as better than the present
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informal indicating affection, esp humorous affection
my little old wife
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informal a jocular name for Satan
noun
Usage
Many people nowadays prefer to talk about older people rather than old people , and the phrase the old is best avoided altogether
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of old
First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English eald, ald; cognate with Dutch old, German alt, Gothic altheis; akin to Old Norse ala “to nourish”
Explanation
Use the adjective old to describe someone who's been alive for a long time. When you're 30, 60 seems old, and when you're 60, 90 seems old. When you're 90, face it, you're old! The adjective old also means former. It can be fun to visit your favorite teachers at your old elementary school, or to drive through your old neighborhood. You can use old to describe something of long duration, like your old friends from camp who you visit every summer. Old also has numerous informal or slang uses, like the phrase "any old," which you'd use to say, "I don't want just any old job; I want to be a circus clown."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Two days after I had met the old musician on that damp muddy roadside, I found myself drawn into the passions of the war in a personal and – at the time – devastating way.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
He told NPR that returning to play Optimus Prime in these films was “like slipping into an old pair of shoes that you hid in the back of your closet.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026
He had just published astonishing photographs taken amid the ruins of the old city, recently liberated from ISIS, that had been the epicenter of global jihadism.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
I was diagnosed with HSD earlier this year, and know I am fortunate to have made this discovery at 24 years old, and not years later, like many sufferers.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
As I stand two feet from the old man’s shotgun, I’m learning what the boy already knew: For the rest of her life, that little white girl would be the recipient of a priceless gift.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
"My elder brother Ram Sharan Rasaili is among those missing in Rasuwa. That's why we are out searching for him," Khatani told AFP at the government-run Bir hospital in the capital.
From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026
Among them was Subash Khatani, scanning lists and speaking to officials in the hope of finding news of his elder brother, one of the hundreds unaccounted for after the disaster.
From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026
The American great lost in the doubles with elder sister Venus at the Cincinnati Open on Monday in her first match since injuring her knee at Wimbledon.
From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026
On Tuesday, the San Diego County district attorney’s office announced its decision to pursue capital punishment against Leticia McCormack, who was an ordained elder and youth minister at a San Diego church.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
The elder motions for us to follow him, and he leads us to a field.
From "Blood on the River" by Elisa Carbone
But even some senior Republican aides and older staffers are blowing the whistle.
From Slate ● Aug. 27, 2026
She is now preparing to start college, where she hopes to pursue a career supporting older people with dementia.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
She said that, while younger generations use AI the most, when older people do use it, they really take to it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
Class 3 e-bikes can only be ridden by riders who are 16 or older, include pedals and can reach speeds of up to 28 mph.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026
Tonight, Jillian sees Parker as a surprisingly decent singer who dances in a bouncy and carefree way that is distinctly different from his older brother’s sexy moves.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Kula Priya, whose eldest son is missing, said she had lost everything when the deluge hit.
From Barron's ● Aug. 28, 2026
In a television interview with ABC News, Jake Reiner, the eldest son, described the aftermath of the slayings and the arrest of his brother, Nick, as a “living nightmare.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026
After health problems forced my eldest sister into a nursing home recently, I thought about what I could do to make her feel more settled.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
Their eldest might fail her final year after breaking a bone during her exams.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
Our eldest sister, Mrs. Underhill, was twenty-three years of age when I was home.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
By the way, the third name doppelgänger in that NBC headline is former Anchorage Mayor Dan A. Sullivan, a Republican, who’s the oldest of the trio.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
Portugal's Vista Alegre, the oldest and largest porcelain maker in the Iberian country, decided to install energy storage systems in 2022, seizing the opportunity of abundant funds from the EU's Recovery and Resilience Plan.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
I have already outlived my male predecessors by about six years — the oldest died at 78 — and I suspect I may not have many years left.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026
This specimen is also the oldest example discovered so far.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 21, 2026
He had to torch his oldest friendship as well, burn that to the ground along with everything else.
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
