sexagenarian
Americanadjective
noun
noun
adjective
-
being from 60 to 69 years old
-
of or relating to a sexagenarian
Usage
What does sexagenarian mean? A sexagenarian is someone in their 60s (60 to 69 years old), or someone who is 60 years old. Sexagenarian can also be used as an adjective to describe someone in their 60s, as in Our audience is mostly made up of sexagenarian women, or things related to such a person, as in I have entered my sexagenarian years. It’s one of several similar terms used to refer to a person of a certain age, including quadragenarian (40s), quinquagenarian (50s), septuagenarian (70s), octogenarian (80s), and nonagenarian (90s). Such words are more commonly used as people get older: sexagenarian is more common than quadragenarian and quinquagenarian, which are rarely used. Septuagenarian and octogenarian are even more commonly used. Another word for sexagenarian is sexegenary. Example: Today is my last day as a sexagenarian—tomorrow I begin my 70s!
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of sexagenarian
1730–40; < Latin sexāgēnāri ( us ) sexagenary + -an
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.
The Mexican sexagenarian Teresa Margolles does just that across a body of work that focuses on violence, femicide, migration and border issues.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026
Times contributor Rip Rense described Coates at the time as “a handsome blue-eyed still-petite sexagenarian whose alto voice is unchanged since 1951.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2023
A sexagenarian who revels in routine, Otto wakes up at 6:29 a.m. — seconds before his alarm is set to go off — and makes the rounds in his gated Pittsburgh cul-de-sac.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 4, 2023
Marsalis was quick to say he didn’t name this weekend’s concerts — “Wynton at 60” — which celebrate his new status as a sexagenarian with a program of his originals from four decades.
From New York Times ● Nov. 19, 2021
Black-draped sexagenarian leaned down to examine pink- swaddled infant.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
