older

[ ohl-der ]

See synonyms for older on Thesaurus.com

adjective

a comparative of old.

synonym study For older

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.

Opposites for older

newer, younger

See antonyms for older on Thesaurus.com

Words that may be confused with older

elder, older (see synonym study at the current entry)

Words Nearby older

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use older in a sentence

Do you think that as we get older our thoughts shift to the more abstract, the music, than the definite, the lyrics?
Belle & Sebastian Aren’t So Shy Anymore | James Joiner | January 7, 2015 | THE DAILY BEAST
But as you get older, I find I get more tunes and I have to work harder at the words.
Belle & Sebastian Aren’t So Shy Anymore | James Joiner | January 7, 2015 | THE DAILY BEAST
The older boy climbed in first, followed by the younger son and then their mother.
Choking Back Tears, Thousands of Cops Honor Fallen Officer Ramos | Michael Daly | December 28, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Ramos was 38—nearly two decades older than the average recruit.
In The Shadow of Murdered Cops | Michael Daly | December 26, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Julio Cardenas, 25 and an MC from the group RCA, was older but with a youthful smile that hid the harsher sides of Cuban life.
Cuban Hip-Hop Was Born in Alamar | Daniel Levin | December 26, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST

Of this older view much still survives, and much that is ennobling.
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice | Stephen Leacock
To Harry's surprise, the soldier detailed to go with him proved to be a boy, not much older than himself.
The Courier of the Ozarks | Byron A. Dunn
All religions, the Christian religion included, are adaptations or variants of older religions.
God and my Neighbour | Robert Blatchford
I have an adopted sister, six years older than myself, who married twelve years ago.
Ancestors | Gertrude Atherton
Awe stole upon him; he felt himself included in the great ideal of this older day.
The Wave | Algernon Blackwood

British Dictionary definitions for older

older

/ (ˈəʊldə) /

adjective

the comparative of old
having lived or existed longer; of greater age: Also (of people, esp members of the same family): elder

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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