empty nester

American  

Or empty-nester

noun

1. a parent whose children have reached adulthood and left home.

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empty-nester British  

noun

1. informal a married person whose children have grown up and left home

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Etymology

Origin of empty nester

First recorded in 1960–65; empty nest + -er ¹

Example Sentences

For Veronica P., an empty nester who moved to Olive Dell in March 2024, the ranch offered her acceptance.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 5, 2025

Milestones like a 40th or 50th birthday, or becoming an empty nester, can provoke uncertainty about your life and your future.

From New York Times • Jan. 20, 2024

She joined Airbnb when she became an empty nester to earn money in retirement and to meet people from around the world.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 21, 2023

It was Sandy Stokes — the sandpaper-voiced empty nester who had white shag carpet in her California living room and an uncanny empathy for the Czechoslovakian immigrants next door — who gave me the book.

From Washington Post • May 1, 2023

Zöe, I can't let you leave without asking you one last question I'm going to be an empty nester soon.

From Salon • Aug. 4, 2022