octogenarian

American  

[ok-tuh-juh-nair-ee-uhn] / ˌɒk tə dʒəˈnɛər i ən /

adjective

1. of the age of 80 years.

2. between 80 and 90 years old.

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noun

1. a person who is between 80 and 90 years old.

octogenarian British  

/ ˌɒktəʊdʒɪˈnɛərɪən, ɒkˈtɒdʒɪnərɪ /

noun

1. a person who is from 80 to 89 years old

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adjective

1. of or relating to an octogenarian

Usage

What does octogenarian mean? An octogenarian is someone in their 80s (80 to 89 years old), or someone who is 80 years old. Octogenarian can also be used as an adjective to describe someone in their 80s, as in Our audience is mostly made up of octogenarian women, or things related to such a person, as in I have entered my octogenarian years. It’s one of several similar terms used to refer to a person of a certain age, including quadragenarian (40s), quinquagenarian (50s), sexagenarian (60s), septuagenarian (70s), and nonagenarian (90s). Such words are more commonly used as people get older: quadragenarian and quinquagenarian are rarely used, but septuagenarian and octogenarian are more commonly used. Another less common word for octogenarian is octogenary. Example: Today is my last day as an octogenarian—tomorrow I begin my 90s!

Other Word Forms

• octogenarianism
  noun

Etymology

Origin of octogenarian

1805–15; < Latin octōgēnāri ( us ) comprising eighty, eighty years old (equivalent to octōgēn ( ī ) eighty each + -ārius -ary ) + -an

Explanation

Someone who's octogenarian is older than 80 and younger than 90. If your great-aunt is 84, she's an octogenarian. You can use this word as an adjective or a noun for anyone who is in their eighties. Many octogenarians are grandparents. While one octogenarian might live in an assisted living residence and use a wheelchair, plenty of octogenarian folks drive their own cars and live in houses or apartments. Just like teenagers or thirty-somethings, octogenarians don't necessarily have much in common with each other aside from their age.

Example Sentences

Having reached octogenarian levels, a generation that shaped much of our past is shaping the future of aging for themselves and those who follow.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 13, 2026

Now we have the vanishing of Nancy Guthrie, the octogenarian mother of a TV news personality, evidently carried off from her Arizona home into … a void.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 21, 2026

So the prolific octogenarian doubled down, retweeting other Tesla and Musk haters and praising the mogul’s estranged transgender daughter.

From Slate • Nov. 13, 2025

In his campaign for a second term, current President Lazarus Chakwera pledged to fix Malawi's economy - as did his main rival, octogenarian former leader Peter Mutharika.

From BBC • Sep. 16, 2025

They seemed, at times, to come and go almost daily, with the exception of Miss Trixie, the octogenarian assistant accountant, who had been copying figures inaccurately into the Levy' ledgers for almost half a century.

From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole