- comparative of old.
older
Americanadjective
adjective
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the comparative of old
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Also (of people, esp members of the same family): elder. having lived or existed longer; of greater age
Synonym Usage
Older, elder imply having greater age than something or someone else. Older is the usual form of the comparative of old: This building is older than that one. Elder, now greatly restricted in application, is used chiefly to indicate seniority in age as between any two people but especially priority of birth as between children born of the same parents: The elder brother became king.
Explanation
An older person is a senior citizen or someone who's been around long enough that they're not considered "young." If you want to check out some older people, take part in the early bird special at your local diner. You can use the adjective older to describe elderly folks (like your older neighbors who don't drive at night any more) or a person who was born first: "Her older sister was much bossier than her younger sister." You can also use older to talk about things that have been around longer, like older songs or older cars, as opposed to newer things.
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.
My older brother was responsible for handling their estate, but he never probated their will.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 1, 2026
Adding jet engines to Geran drones turns them into less-sophisticated cruise missiles, allowing them to reach speeds of around 300 miles an hour—roughly three times the speed of older versions of the Shahed-type drone.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
The family went home about three days after the children were born, where the couple also had to tend to their older daughter and son.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 31, 2026
"If you're a millennial, or you're the older part of Gen Z, you're kind of over going out to the pub every weekend," she said.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026
But Nollie played as hard as anyone and wasn’t much older than I and it didn’t seem fair that she should always do everything right.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
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.
