old
Americanadjective
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older,
comparative
-
elder,
comparative
-
oldest,
superlative
-
eldest
superlative
-
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.
-
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
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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:
Demand and expectation were huge among fans, old and new.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
Immigration from the cricket-mad nations of the old British Empire has provided a shot in the arm for many local clubs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
“The tools are evolving so quickly that students are effectively using very different tools by the time the possible negative effects of the old tools start appearing,” Kopec said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
Biological age, by contrast, reflects how old the body appears based on measurable changes in cells, organs, metabolism, and other physiological systems.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
His old employers on the railroad quickly come to the same conclusion.
From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman
The elder Ellison announced in 2024 that Oracle would be moving again, this time to Nashville, although that relocation hasn’t been finalized.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
“Coltrane: The Definitive Visual Celebration of the Legend” also includes seven short essays, representing diverse responses to the elder Coltrane’s music and personality.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
The retirement myth of endless golf games or fishing trips melting into decades of elder bliss has been crumbling for decades.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026
But Markey’s victory also fits a different pattern: In all three of those earlier races, the elder lawmaker lost to a more outspokenly progressive rival.
From Slate ● Sep. 2, 2026
I couldn’t hit him because I wasn’t about to hit my elder.
From "Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood" by Trevor Noah
In the two months before Phillips took the children again, social workers also ignored concerns raised by their older step-siblings.
From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026
“And it’s very hard to find films about older people — women most especially.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026
The team found signs that younger generations are aging more rapidly on a biological level than older generations did at comparable ages.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
The apps will also need to guard against customers borrowing devices from older friends and relatives, and ensure the ID app belongs to the person using it.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
He was older than me, by the look of him, and with a whole lot more muscles.
From "The Teacher’s Funeral" by Richard Peck
The volunteer found Arlene’s eldest daughter, Dayna Zoller, now a dentist in New Jersey.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
"Kim himself inherited power as the third-generation leader despite not being the eldest son," he noted.
From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026
Everything is intended to go to my eldest grandson, who is unable to manage his finances because of severe mental illness.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 2, 2026
The eight family members include his mother and eldest daughter.
From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2026
But with the threat gone and his family arrived from Dresden, Tycho began to settle in at the castle, sending his eldest son back to Denmark to fetch four large observing instruments from Hveen.
From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin
All three daughters have competed on the dance team at no cost, with the two oldest becoming team captains and student leaders.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026
As the oldest child of Prince William and Catherine, George is second in line of succession to the throne.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
Women make up the majority of voters in Maine, which is on average the oldest state in the country, with a median age of 44.8 years.
From Salon ● Sep. 7, 2026
Unretouched triangular microlithic projectile points have been identified from their impact traces in the oldest occupation layers of the Obi-Rakhmat site in Uzbekistan, dating to 80,000 years ago.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 6, 2026
Mr. Slobodkin is the oldest, slowest teacher in the whole school.
From "Linked" by Gordon Korman
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.
