old

See also: Old, öld, ǫld, øld, 'old, old-, and OLD

English

Alternative forms

• ol', ol, ole
• olde (archaic)

Etymology

From Middle English olde, ald, from Old English ald, eald (“old, aged, ancient, antique, primeval”), from Proto-West Germanic *ald, from Proto-Germanic *aldaz (“grown-up”), originally a participle form, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eltós (“grown, tall, big”).

Cognate with Scots auld (“old”), North Frisian ool, ual, uul (“old”), Saterland Frisian oold (“old”), West Frisian âld (“old”), Dutch oud (“old”), Low German old (“old”), German alt (“old”), Swedish äldre (“older, elder”), Icelandic eldri (“older, elder”), Latin altus (“high, tall, grown big, lofty”). Related to eld.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈəʊld/, [ˈɔʊ(ɫ)d], [ˈɒʊ(ɫ)d]

  • Audio (UK)

    (file)

  • Audio (UK)

    (file)

• (US) enPR: ōld, IPA^(key): /ˈoʊld/

  • Audio (US)

    (file)

• (New Zealand) IPA^(key): /aʉld/, [ɒʊ(ɫ)d]
• Rhymes: -əʊld

Adjective

old (comparative older or elder, superlative oldest or eldest or (US, dialectal) oldermost)

1. Of an object, concept, relationship, etc., having existed for a relatively long period of time.

   an old abandoned building

   an old friend

   • 1879, R[ichard] J[efferies], chapter 1, in The Amateur Poacher, London: Smith, Elder, & Co., […], →OCLC:

     They burned the old gun that used to stand in the dark corner up in the garret, close to the stuffed fox that always grinned so fiercely. Perhaps the reason why he seemed in such a ghastly rage was that he did not come by his death fairly. Otherwise his pelt would not have been so perfect. And why else was he put away up there out of sight?—and so magnificent a brush as he had too.

   1. Of a living being, having lived for most of the expected years.

      a wrinkled old man

   2. Of a perishable item, having existed for most of, or more than, its shelf life.

      an old loaf of bread

   3. Of a species or language, belonging to a lineage that is distantly related others

      the ginkgo is one of the oldest living trees

      Basque is the oldest language in Europe

2. Having been used and thus no longer new or unused.

   I find that an old toothbrush is good to clean the keyboard with.

3. Having existed or lived for the specified time.

   How old are they? She’s five years old and he's seven. We also have a young teen and a two-year-old child.

   My great-grandfather lived to be a hundred and one years old.

4. (heading) Of an earlier time.
   1. Former, previous.

      My new car is not as good as my old one.  a school reunion for Old Etonians

      • 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter VIII, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:

        The humor of my proposition appealed more strongly to Miss Trevor than I had looked for, and from that time forward she became her old self again; for, even after she had conquered her love for the Celebrity, the mortification of having been jilted by him remained.

      • 1994, Michael Grumley, Life Drawing:

        But over my old life, a new life had formed.

   2. That is no longer in existence.

      The footpath follows the route of an old railway line.

   3. Obsolete; out-of-date.

      That is the old way of doing things; now we do it this way.

   4. Familiar.
      • 1991, Stephen Fry, chapter III, in The Liar, London: William Heinemann, →ISBN, page 26:

        Adrian thought it worth while to try out his new slang. ‘I say, you fellows, here's a rum go. Old Biffo was jolly odd this morning. He gave me a lot of pi-jaw about slacking and then invited me to tea. No rotting! He did really.’

      When he got drunk and quarrelsome they just gave him the old heave-ho.

   5. (UK) Being a graduate or alumnus of a school, especially a public school.
5. Tiresome after prolonged repetition.
   • 1995, MacUser, volume 11, MacUser Publications, page 147:

     Rik: But even great shtick can get old real fast: the dreaded Saturday Night Live syndrome.
     Jim: Randomness can help - many Living Books have characters that do different things each time you click on them.

   • 2000, Charles A. Siringo, A Texas Cowboy: or, Fifteen Years on the Hurricane Deck of a Spanish Pony, Penguin, →ISBN, page 100:

     John and I built a small stone house on the head of “Bonetta” Canyon and had a hog killing time all by ourselves. Hunting was our delight at first, until it became old.

   • 2008, Homer L. Hall, Logan H. Aimone, High School Journalism, The Rosen Publishing Group, →ISBN, page 171:

     The songs start to get old real fast, and it's easy to get bored after the third song.

   • 2012, Blossom, From Under a Bridge Ii, Xlibris Corporation, →ISBN, page 40:

     It was the same old thing every week, working and drinking, working and drinking. It became old and I got really sick of it.

   Your constant pestering is getting old.

6. Said of subdued colors, particularly reds, pinks and oranges, as if they had faded over time.

   Synonym: antique

7. A grammatical intensifier, often used in describing something positive, and combined with another adjective.

   We're having a good old time.

   My next car will be a big old SUV.

   My wife makes the best little old apple pie in Texas.

   any old

8. (informal, of a person) Indicating affection and familiarity.
   • 1951, J. D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye, Boston, Mass.: Little, Brown and Company, →OCLC, page 165:

     Finally, when they were all done slobbering around, old Sally introduced us.

9. Designed for a mature audience; unsuitable for children below a certain age.
   • 1868, Oliver Optic's Magazine: Our Boys and Girls ..., page 431:

     Monsieur's story is too old for our Juvenile Magazine.

   • 1998, Rita Schrank, Science, Math, and Nutrition for Toddlers: Setting the Stage for Serendipity:

     The text is too old for toddlers, but the colorful photographs are large enough and appropriate for them.

   • 2006 January 9, Christine L. Williams, Inside Toyland: Working, Shopping, and Social Inequality, Univ of California Press, →ISBN, page 219:

     Diane Ehrensaft (1997) finds that middle-class parents typically buy "older" toys for their children to encourage accelerated development.

   • 2019 12, Sean David Burke, Lighting the Literacy Fire, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 131:

     If you feel you have to leave something out because it's too horrible, then either the story is too old for the child, or you fail to understand the way your child will accept the rough justice and feel inwardly content at the outcome.

   • 2021, Joe Brumm, “Chest”, in Bluey, season 3, episode 11:

     Bluey: Oh! It's like checkers!
     Bandit: Yeah, but a lot harder than checkers.
     Chilli: And so probably a bit old for Bluey, right?

10. (obsolete) Excessive, abundant.
    • 1598–1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “Much Adoe about Nothing”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene ii]:

      URSULA: Madam, you must come to your uncle. Yonder's old coil at home: it is proved, my Lady Hero hath been falsely accused, the prince and Claudio mightily abused;

Synonyms

• (having existed for a long period of time): ancient, long in the tooth, paleo-; see also Thesaurus:old
• (having lived for many years): aged, ageing / aging, elderly, long in the tooth, on in years; see also Thesaurus:elderly
• (having existed or lived for the specified time): aged, of age
• (former): erstwhile, ex-, former, one-time, past; see also Thesaurus:former
• (out-of-date): antiquated, obsolete (of words), outdated; see also Thesaurus:obsolete

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of "having existed for a long period of time"): brand new, fresh, new, neo-, ceno-
• (antonym(s) of "having lived for many years"): young
• (antonym(s) of "former"): current, latest, new

Derived terms

• age-old
• an old dog for a hard road
• any old
• any old how
• any old kind of way
• any old nook or cranny
• any old thing
• argue like an old married couple
• as demure as an old whore at a christening
• as old as Methuselah
• as old as time itself
• back to the old drawing board
• bad old days
• bicker like an old married couple
• big old
• centuries-old
• chip off the old block
• chip of the old block
• come the old acid
• come the old soldier
• come the old soldier
• comfortable as an old shoe
• day-old
• dirty old man
• every old nook and cranny
• everything old is new again
• fight like an old married couple
• for old sake's sake
• for old time's sake
• for old times' sake
• for old times' sakes
• gay old time
• give someone the old heave-ho
• good old
• good old boy
• good old boy network
• good old days
• good old times
• grand old man
• high old time
• how old are you
• I am ... year(s) old
• I am twenty years old
• I'm ... year(s) old
• I'm twenty years old
• in the old times
• like old boots
• li'l old
• lil old
• li'l' old
• little old
• little old me
• make old bones
• money for old rope
• new wine in an old bottle
• new wine in an old wineskin
• of old
• ol'
• Old Aberdeen
• old-age
• old age
• old age pension
• old age pensioner
• old-age pensioner
• Old Akkadian
• old ale
• Old Alresford
• Old Armenian
• old army game
• old as Adam
• Old Assyrian
• old as the hills, older than the hills
• old as the Pyramids
• old as time
• old as time itself
• Old Babylonian
• old bag
• old ball
• old banger
• Old Basford
• Old Basing
• old bean
• Old Bering Sea
• Old Blighty
• Old Blue
• Old Bolingbroke
• old boy
• old-boyism
• old boyism
• old-boy network
• old boy network
• old boys' club
• Old Bulgarian
• old cat
• Old Catton
• old chap
• old chestnut
• Old Church Slavic
• Old Church Slavonic
• Old Cleeve
• old clothesman
• old-clothesman
• old cocoyam
• old codger
• old college try
• Old Colwyn
• Old Coulsdon
• old country
• Old Cumnock
• Old Czech
• old days
• old dear
• Old Denaby
• Old Dutch
• old Earth creationism
• old-earth creationism
• old earth creationism
• Old Egyptian
• olden
• Old English
• old English carrier
• old English Carrier
• old enough to vote
• older adult
• older-aged
• older brother
• older sister
• older than dirt
• older than the hills
• older than the Pyramids
• oldest occupation
• oldest profession
• oldest profession in the world
• old-fangled
• old-farrand
• old-farrant
• old fart
• old fartism
• old-fashion
• old fashioned
• old-fashioned
• old-fashioned look
• old-fashionedly
• old-fashionedness
• old fellow
• old-field colt
• old flame
• Old Flemish
• old fogey
• old fogy
• old folks
• old folks' home
• Old Ford
• old franc
• Old Franconian
• Old Frankish
• Old French
• old friend
• Old Frisian
• old fruit
• old gentleman
• old girl
• Old Glory
• old gold
• old gown
• old-growth
• old growth
• old-growth forest
• old guard
• old guardism
• old guardist
• old habits die hard
• old hag syndrome
• old hand
• Old Harbour
• old-hat
• old hat
• old head on young shoulders
• Old High German
• Old Hill
• oldhood
• old horse
• Old Icelandic
• oldies
• Old Indic
• Old Indo-Aryan
• Old Ingarsby
• old in the tooth
• Old Ionic
• Old Iranian
• Old Irish
• Old Kent Road
• Old Kent Road
• Old Kilpatrick
• old lace
• old lady
• old lang syne
• Old Latin
• Old Leake
• old-line
• old long syne
• Old Low Franconian
• Old Low Frankish
• Old Low German
• oldly
• Old Lyme
• old maid
• old-maidenism
• old-maidhood
• old-maidish
• old-maidism
• old maid's bonnet
• old man
• old-man
• old man of the woods
• old man's beard
• old man's drip
• old man's eyebrow
• old man's friend
• old man's pepper
• old man yelling at a cloud
• old man yelling at cloud
• old man yelling at clouds
• old man yelling at the clouds
• old man yells at cloud
• old master
• old mate
• old media
• Old Milverton
• old money
• old moon
• Old National Pronunciation
• oldness
• old news
• Old Nick
• Old Norse
• Old North
• Old North French
• Old North State
• Old Norwegian
• Old Oak Common
• old-oil
• old-old
• old penny
• old people
• old people's home
• Old Persian
• Old Provençal
• Old Prussian
• Old Radnor
• old ral
• Old Ravensworth
• old regime
• old rose
• Old Russian
• olds
• old salt
• Old Sarum
• old saw
• Old Saxon
• Old Saybrook
• Old Scandinavian
• old-school
• old school
• old shoe
• old-shoe
• Old Shoreham
• old sight
• old sins cast long shadows
• old sins have long shadows
• old skool
• Old Slavic
• Old Slavonic
• old sod
• old soldier
• old song
• old soul
• old sourdough
• old sport
• old squaw
• old stager
• old stick
• old-style
• Old Swan
• old sweat
• old-sweat
• Old Testament
• old-time
• old time
• old-time country
• old-timer
• old timer
• old-timers' disease
• old-timer's disease
• old timer's disease
• old timers' disease
• old time used to be
• old timey
• old-timey
• old-timy
• old toast
• old top
• old town, Old Town
• old tyme
• Old Welsh
• old wife
• old-wifish
• Old Windsor
• old wine in a new bottle
• old wine in new bottles
• old wives' tale
• old wivish
• old-wivish
• Old Wolverton
• old woman
• old-womanish
• old-womanishly
• old woman's tooth
• Old Woodhall
• old-world
• Old World
• ole
• one-year-old
• over-old
• pay off old scores
• plain old
• plain old data
• plain old telephone service
• poor old
• rake over old coals
• reopen old wounds
• ripe old age
• same old
• same-old same-old
• same old same old
• same old same-old
• same old-same old
• same old story
• slip back to old ways
• some old
• Some Old Hippie Caught Another Hippie Tripping On Acid
• that old dog won't hunt
• the oldest trick in the book
• the old woman is plucking her goose
• there's life in the old dog yet
• there's many a good tune played on an old fiddle
• there's no fool like an old fool
• thousand-year-old egg
• today years old
• tough as old boots
• tune the old cow died of
• up to one's old tricks
• what's old is new again
• world-old
• world's oldest profession
• year-old
• you are never too old to learn
• you can't catch old birds with chaff
• you can't put an old head on young shoulders
• you can't teach an old dog new tricks
• you're never too old to learn

 

Translations

of an object, concept, etc: having existed for a relatively long period of time

• Abkhaz: ажә (aẑʷ)
• Acehnese: tuha
• Adyghe: жъы (ẑə)
• Afrikaans: ou (af)
• Ahom: 𑜀𑜧 (kaw)
• Albanian: vjetër (sq)
• American Sign Language: S@Chin S@FromChin
• Amharic: አሮጌ (ʾäroge)
• Andi: вохор (voxor)
• Arabic: قَدِيم (ar) (qadīm)

  Hijazi Arabic: قديم (gadīm)

  Moroccan Arabic: قديم (qdīm)

  South Levantine Arabic: قديم (ʔadīm)

• Aragonese: biello, viello (an) m
• Armenian: հին (hy) (hin), տարեց (hy) (tarecʻ)
• Aromanian: veclju
• Assamese: পুৰণা (purona)
• Asturian: vieyu (ast), antiguu
• Avar: хераб (xerab)
• Azerbaijani: əski (az), köhnə (az)
• Bashkir: иҫке (iśke)
• Basque: zahar
• Belarusian: стары́ (starý)
• Bengali: পুরোনো (bn) (purōnō)
• Bikol Central: daan (bcl)
• Breton: hen (br), kozh (br)
• Brunei Malay: lama
• Bulgarian: стар (bg) (star)
• Burmese: ဟောင်း (my) (haung:)
• Carpathian Rusyn: стары́й (starŷ́j)
• Catalan: vell (ca), antic (ca)
• Chechen: къена (qʼena)
• Chichewa: please add this translation if you can
• Chickasaw: sipokni
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 舊／旧 (gau⁶)

  Dungan: җю (ži͡u)

  Eastern Min: 舊／旧 (gô / gêu)

  Gan: 舊／旧 (qiu⁵)

  Hakka: 舊／旧 (PFS: khiu; Guangdong: kiu⁴)

  Hokkien: 舊／旧 (zh-min-nan) (kū / kiū)

  Jin: 舊／旧 (jiou³)

  Mandarin: 舊／旧 (zh) (jiù), 古老 (zh) (gǔlǎo)

  Northern Min: 舊／旧 (giū)

  Wu: 舊／旧 (⁶jieu)

  Xiang: 舊／旧 (jiou⁵ / jiou⁴)

• Chuvash: кивӗ (kivĕ)
• Coptic: ⲁⲥ (as)
• Cornish: hen, koth
• Czech: starý (cs)
• Dalmatian: vieclo m
• Danish: gammel (da)
• Dutch: oud (nl)
• Elfdalian: gåmål
• Erzya: ташто (tašto)
• Esperanto: malnova (eo), grandaĝa
• Estonian: vana (et)
• Ewe: xoxo
• Faroese: gamal (fo)
• Finnish: vanha (fi)
• French: (used before the noun) vieux (fr) m, vieille (fr) f
• Friulian: vieli, vieri
• Galician: vello (gl)
• Georgian: ძველი (ʒveli)
• German: alt (de)
• Gothic: 𐌰𐌻𐌸𐌴𐌹𐍃 (alþeis), 𐍆𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌽𐌴𐌹𐍃 (fairneis)
• Greek: παλιός (el) m (paliós), αρχαίος (el) m (archaíos)

  Ancient: παλαιός (palaiós)

• Gujarati: જૂનું (jūnũ)
• Haitian Creole: vye
• Hausa: tsoho
• Hawaiian: kahiko
• Hebrew: יָשָׁן (he) (yashán)
• Higaonon: da-an
• Hindi: पुराना (hi) (purānā)
• Hittite: 𒈪𒅀𒄷𒉿𒀭𒍝 (miyaḫuwanz)
• Hungarian: régi (hu)
• Icelandic: gamall (is)
• Ido: anciena (io), antiqua (io)
• Igbo: ochie (ig)
• Indonesian: lama (id)
• Interlingua: vetere, vetule
• Irish: sean (ga)
• Istriot: viecio
• Italian: vecchio (it)
• Japanese: 古い (ja) (ふるい, furui)
• Javanese: lama (jv), lawas (jv)
• Kabardian: жьы (kbd) (źə)
• Kabuverdianu: antigu, antige, bedju, bedje
• Kannada: ಪುರಾತನ (kn) (purātana)
• Kashubian: stôri
• Kazakh: ескі (kk) (eskı)
• Khmer: ចាស់ (km) (cah)
• Korean: 낡다 (ko) (nakda), 오래되다 (ko) (oraedoeda)
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: کۆن (kon)

  Northern Kurdish: kevn (ku)

• Kyrgyz: эски (ky) (eski)
• Lao: ເກົ່າ (lo) (kao)
• Latgalian: vacs, senejais
• Latin: vetus (la), vetulus (la)
• Latvian: sens (lv), vecs
• Lezgi: кьуьзуь (q̇üzü)
• Ligurian: vêgio
• Lithuanian: senas (lt)
• Livonian: vanā
• Lombard: vegg (lmo) m, veggia (lmo) f
• Louisiana Creole French: vyé
• Lü: ᦂᧁᧈ (k̇aw¹)
• Macedonian: стар (star)
• Malay: lama (ms)
• Malayalam: പഴയ (ml) (paḻaya), പഴയത് (ml) (paḻayatŭ)
• Maltese: qadim m
• Manchu: ᡶᡝ (fe)
• Maori: tahito, tawhito
• Marathi: जुना (mr) m (junā)
• Minangkabau: lamo (min)
• Mirandese: bielho
• Mòcheno: òlt
• Moksha: ташта (tašta)
• Mongolian: хуучин (xuučin), хөгшин (mn) (xögšin)
• Muong: please add this translation if you can
• Navajo: sání
• Neapolitan: viecchio
• Nepali: पुरानो (ne) (purāno)
• Ngazidja Comorian: -ɗuhazi
• North Frisian: (Föhr-Amrum) ual
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: gammel (no), gammal (no)

  Nynorsk: gamal, gammal

• Occitan: vièlh (oc)
• Odia: ପୁରୁଣା (or) (puruṇa)
• Old Church Slavonic:

  Cyrillic: старъ (starŭ)

• Old East Slavic: старъ (starŭ)
• Old English: eald (ang), gamol
• Old Javanese: lama, lawas
• Old Saxon: ald
• Oromo: moofaa
• Pashto: زوړ (ps) m (zoṛ), زړه (ps) f (zaṛa)
• Persian: قدیمی (fa) (qadimi), دیرین (fa) (dirin) (archaic), کهن (fa) (kohan), کهنه (fa) (kohne)
• Piedmontese: vecc
• Pijin: olofala
• Plautdietsch: oolt
• Polish: stary (pl)
• Portuguese: velho (pt), antigo (pt)
• Punjabi: ਪੁਰਾਣਾ m (purāṇā), ਪੁਰਾਣੀ f (purāṇī), ਪੁਰਾਣੇ pl (purāṇe), ਪੁਰਾਣੀਆਂ f pl (purāṇīā̃)
• Quechua: mauka
• Rajasthani: please add this translation if you can
• Romani: purano
• Romanian: vechi (ro)
• Romansch: vegl
• Russian: ста́рый (ru) (stáryj)
• Samoan: leva
• Saterland Frisian: oold
• Scots: auld
• Scottish Gaelic: sean, aosda, aosmhor
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: стар

  Roman: star (sh)

• Shan: ၵဝ်ႇ (shn) (kào)
• Sicilian: vecchiu
• Sindhi: please add this translation if you can
• Sinhalese: පැරණි (si) (pæraṇi), පරණ (si) (paraṇa)
• Slovak: starý (sk)
• Slovene: stàr (sl)
• Somali: gabow
• Sorbian:

  Lower Sorbian: stary

  Upper Sorbian: stary (hsb)

• Southern Altai: эски (eski)
• Spanish: antiguo (es), viejo (es)
• Sranan Tongo: owru
• Sundanese: heubeul (su)
• Swedish: gammal (sv), förlegad (sv), utsliten (sv)
• Sylheti: ꠙꠥꠞ꠆ꠘꠣ (furna)
• Tagalog: luma
• Tai Dam: ꪹꪀ꪿ꪱ
• Tajik: кӯҳна (tg) (kühna), қадим (tg) (qadim), қадими (qadimi)
• Tamil: பழைய (ta) (paḻaiya)
• Tarantino: vècchie
• Tatar: иске (iske)
• Tausug: dan
• Telugu: పాత (te) (pāta)
• Tetum: tuan
• Thai: เก่า (th) (gào)
• Tibetan: རྙིང་པ (rnying pa)
• Tigrinya: ኣረጊት (ʾarägit)
• Tongan: motuʻa
• Turkish: eski (tr)
• Turkmen: köne
• Udi: биси (bisi)
• Ukrainian: стари́й (uk) (starýj)
• Urdu: پرانا (purānā)
• Uyghur: ئەسكى (eski)
• Uzbek: eski (uz)
• Venetian: vecio
• Vietnamese: cũ (vi)
• Volapük: vönik (vo)
• Walloon: vî (wa)
• Waray-Waray: da-an
• Welsh: hen (cy)
• West Frisian: âld (fy)
• Western Bukidnon Manobo: da'an
• White Hmong: hub
• Yiddish: אַלט (alt), פֿאַרלעגן (farlegn), יעריק (yerik)
• Zazaki: khan
• Zealandic: oud
• Zhuang: gaeuq
• Zulu: please add this translation if you can

of a living being: having lived for relatively many years

• Adyghe: жъы (ẑə)
• Afrikaans: ou (af)
• Albanian: plak (sq)
• American Sign Language: S@Chin S@FromChin
• Arabic: كَبِير اَلسِّنّ (kabīr as-sinn), مُسِنّ (musinn)

  Egyptian Arabic: عجوز m (ʕagōz)

  Hijazi Arabic: كَبير (kabīr), عجوز m (ʕajūz), شايب m (šāyib)

  South Levantine Arabic: كبير (kbīr)

• Aragonese: biello, viello (an) m
• Armenian: ծեր (hy) (cer), պառավ (hy) (paṙav), տարեց (hy) (tarecʻ)
• Assamese: বুঢ়া m (burha), বুঢ়ী f (burhi)
• Asturian: vieyu (ast)
• Azerbaijani: qoca (az)
• Bashkir: ҡарт (qart)
• Basque: zahar, agure m, atso f
• Belarusian: стары́ (starý), пажылы́ (pažylý), у гада́х (u hadáx), немалады́ (njemaladý)
• Bengali: পুরোনো (bn) (purōnō), প্রবীণ (bn) (probin)
• Brunei Malay: tua, beumur
• Bulgarian: стар (bg) (star), въ́зстар (vǎ́zstar), възста́р (vǎzstár), въ́зрастен (bg) (vǎ́zrasten)
• Burmese: အို (my) (ui)
• Carpathian Rusyn: стары́й (starŷ́j)
• Catalan: vell (ca), gran (ca), longeu (ca) m
• Chamicuro: shashaka
• Cherokee: ᎠᎦᏴᎵ (agayvli)
• Chickasaw: sipokni
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 老 (yue) (lou⁵)

  Dungan: ло (lo)

  Mandarin: 老 (zh) (lǎo), 年老的 (zh) (niánlǎo de), 老年的 (zh) (lǎonián de)

• Chuvash: ватӑ (vat̬ă)
• Czech: starý (cs)
• Danish: gammel (da)
• Dutch: oud (nl)
• Elfdalian: gåmål
• Erzya: сыре (siŕe)
• Esperanto: maljuna, grandaĝa, olda (eo)
• Estonian: vana (et)
• Etruscan: 𐌅𐌄𐌕𐌖𐌔 (vetus)
• Even: хагди (hagʒi)
• Evenki: сагды (sagdi)
• Finnish: vanha (fi)
• Franco-Provençal: vieu m
• French: vieux (fr) (used before the noun)
• Friulian: vieli
• Galician: vello (gl)
• Georgian: მოხუცი (moxuci), ბებერი (beberi), ხანდაზმული (xandazmuli)
• German: alt (de)

  Middle High German: eltlich

• Gothic: 𐌰𐌻𐌸𐌴𐌹𐍃 (alþeis), 𐍃𐌹𐌽𐌴𐌹𐌲𐍃 (sineigs), 𐍆𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌽𐌴𐌹𐍃 (fairneis)
• Greek: γηραιός (el) m (giraiós), ηλικιωμένος (el) m (ilikioménos)

  Ancient: γηραιός (gēraiós)

• Hawaiian: luahine (of women), ʻelemakule (of men)
• Hebrew: זָקֵן (he) (zakén), קָשִׁישׁ (he) m (kashísh)
• Hiligaynon: baúg
• Hindi: बूढ़ा (hi) (būṛhā)
• Hungarian: öreg (hu), idős (hu)
• Icelandic: gamall (is)
• Ido: olda (io)
• Igbo: agadi (ig)
• Indonesian: tua (id)
• Irish: sean (ga), aosta
• Italian: vecchio (it), anziano (it)
• Japanese: 年老いた (としおいた, toshioita), 老いた (ja) (おいた, oita)
• Javanese: tuwa (jv)
• Kabuverdianu: bedju, bedje
• Karakhanid: يَشْلِغْ (yašlïɣ)
• Kashubian: stôri
• Kazakh: кәрі (kk) (kärı)
• Khmer: ចាស់ (km) (cah)
• Korean: 늙다 (ko) (neukda), 나이들다 (naideulda), 연로하다 (yeollohada), 나이 많다 (nai manta)
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: پیرەمێرد (pîremêrd) (male), پیرەژن (pîrejn) (female)

  Northern Kurdish: pîr (ku), پیر (ku) (pîr)

• Kyrgyz: кары (karı)
• Lao: ແກ່ (lo) (kǣ)
• Latin: vetus (la), vetulus (la), senex (la), annosus
• Latvian: vecs
• Ligurian: vêgio
• Lithuanian: senas (lt)
• Livonian: vanā
• Lombard: vegg (lmo) m, veggia (lmo) f
• Louisiana Creole French: vyé
• Macedonian: стар (star)
• Malay: tua (ms)
• Malayalam: പഴയ (ml) (paḻaya), പഴയത് (ml) (paḻayatŭ)
• Maltese: xiħ m, xiħa f, xjuħ pl
• Manchu: ᠰᠠᡴ᠋ᡩ᠋ᠠ (sakda)
• Marathi: भुंडा (bhuṇḍā), म्हातारा (mr) m (mhātārā)
• Minangkabau: tuo (min), gaek (min)
• Mòcheno: òlt
• Moksha: ташта (tašta)
• Mongolian: хөгшин (mn) (xögšin)
• Nanai: сагди (sagʒi)
• Navajo: sání
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: gammel (no), gammal (no)

  Nynorsk: gamal, gammal

• Occitan: vièlh (oc)
• Old Church Slavonic:

  Cyrillic: старъ (starŭ)

• Old East Slavic: старъ (starŭ)
• Old English: eald (ang), gamol
• Old Javanese: tuha
• Ottoman Turkish: یاشلی (yaşlı), قوجه (koca)
• Papiamentu: bieu
• Persian: پیر (fa) (pir), کهنسال (fa) (kohansâl), مسن (fa) (mosen), زرمان (zarmân)
• Plautdietsch: oolt
• Polish: stary (pl), niemłody (pl)
• Portuguese: velho (pt), idoso (pt)
• Punjabi: ਬੁੱਢਾ (buḍḍhā)
• Rapa Nui: koroua, tuuai
• Romani: phuro
• Romanian: bătrân (ro)
• Romansch: vegl
• Russian: ста́рый (ru) (stáryj), пожило́й (ru) (požilój) (elderly (of people)), немолодо́й (ru) (nemolodój), в лета́х (v letáx), в года́х (v godáx), в во́зрасте (ru) (v vózraste)
• Samoan: matua (sm)
• Sanskrit: वृद्ध (sa) (vṛddha)
• Scottish Gaelic: sean, aosda
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: стар

  Roman: star (sh)

• Sinhalese: නාකි (nāki), වයසක (wayasaka)
• Slovak: starý (sk), bývalý
• Slovene: stàr (sl)
• Sorbian:

  Lower Sorbian: stary

• Spanish: anciano (es), viejo (es), provecto (es), añejo (es) (colloquial), longevo
• Sundanese: sepuh
• Swedish: gammal (sv), åldrig (sv), ålderstigen (sv)
• Tajik: пир (pir)
• Tatar: карт (tt) (qart)
• Tausug: mas
• Telugu: ముసలి (te) (musali)
• Tetum: katuas, ferik
• Thai: แก่ (th) (gɛ̀ɛ)
• Tocharian B: ktsaitstse, śrāñ
• Tongan: motuʻa
• Turkish: yaşlı (tr)
• Turkmen: garry
• Udmurt: пересь (pereś)
• Ukrainian: стари́й (uk) (starýj), лі́тній (uk) (lítnij), у літа́х (u litáx), немолоди́й (nemolodýj), підста́ркуватий (pidstárkuvatyj)
• Urdu: بوڑھا (būṛhā)
• Uyghur: قېرى (qëri)
• Uzbek: qari (uz)
• Venetian: vècio (vec), vecio m
• Vietnamese: già (vi)
• Waray-Waray: a-rug, lagas
• Welsh: hen (cy)
• West Frisian: âld (fy)
• Yiddish: אַלט (alt), זקנדיק (zokndik), זקניש (zkeynish), יעריק (yerik)
• Zazaki: khal (diq)
• Zhuang: laux

former

• Armenian: անցած (hy) (ancʻac)
• Asturian: antiguu
• Bashkir: элекке (elekke)
• Bulgarian: бивш (bg) m (bivš)
• Catalan: vell (ca), antic (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 前 (zh) (qián)

• Czech: starý (cs)
• Danish: tidligere (da)
• Dutch: vorig (nl), voormalig (nl)
• Esperanto: eksa (eo), antaŭa
• Estonian: endine (et), vana (et)
• Finnish: vanha (fi), entinen (fi)
• French: ancien (fr) (used before the noun), ex- (fr)
• Galician: vello (gl) m
• German: alt (de)
• Greek: πρώην (el) (próin), τέως (el) (téos)
• Hebrew: קודם m (kodem)
• Hungarian: régi (hu), régebbi (hu), előző (hu), korábbi (hu)
• Irish: sean (ga), ath-
• Italian: vecchio (it)
• Kabuverdianu: antigu, antige
• Korean: 오래되다 (ko) (oraedoeda)
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: پێشو (pêşu)

  Northern Kurdish: (ya/yê) berê (ku)

• Latin: antiquus (la) m, ex (la)
• Latvian: vecs
• Lombard: vegg (lmo) m, veggia (lmo) f
• Louisiana Creole French: ansyen
• Macedonian: стар (star)
• Malay: lama (ms), bekas (ms)
• Norwegian: gammel (no)
• Old English: gēo, īu
• Persian: قدیمی (fa) (qadimi), قبلی (fa) (qabli), پیشین (fa) (pišin), سابق (fa) (sâbeq)
• Polish: stary (pl)
• Portuguese: antigo (pt)
• Romanian: vechi (ro), fost (ro)
• Russian: бы́вший (ru) (bývšij), пре́жний (ru) (préžnij), ста́рый (ru) (stáryj)
• Scottish Gaelic: sean
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: стар

  Roman: star (sh)

• Slovak: starý (sk)
• Slovene: stàr (sl)
• Sorbian:

  Lower Sorbian: stary

• Spanish: viejo (es) (used before the noun), sometimes with people ex- (es), antiguo (es) m
• Swedish: tidigare (sv), före detta (sv)
• Tagalog: dating
• Telugu: మునుపటి (te) (munupaṭi)
• Thai: เก่า (th) (gào), ก่อน (th) (gɔ̀ɔn)
• Turkish: önceki (tr)
• Venetian: vècio (vec), vecio
• Vietnamese: cựu (vi)
• Welsh: hen (cy)
• West Frisian: âld (fy)
• Yiddish: אַלט (alt), געוועזן (gevezn), ביזאַהעריק (bizaherik)

having existed or lived for the specified time

• Catalan: tenir (ca) + period of time
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 歲／岁 (zh) (suì)

• Czech: starý (cs)
• Danish: gammel (da)
• Esperanto: aĝa, jaraĝa, aĝi
• Finnish: -vuotias, vanha (fi), ikäinen (fi)
• French: avoir (fr) + period of time
• German: alt (de)
• Hebrew: בֵּן (he) m (ben), בַּת (he) f (bat)
• Hungarian: (year/s old) éves (hu), (month/s old) hónapos (hu), (week/s old) hetes (hu), (day/s old) napos (hu), (hour/s old) órás (hu), (minute/s old) perces (hu)
• Irish: d'aois
• Italian: avere (it)
• Japanese: 歳 (ja) (さい, sai), 才 (ja) (さい, sai)
• Kashmiri : ؤۂر (vạhạr) (year/s old)
• Korean: 먹었다 (meogeotda)
• Latin: natus esse
• Latvian: vecs
• Louisiana Creole French: period of time + nan or an
• Macedonian: има (ima) + number + години (godini)
• Navajo: nááhai
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: gammel (no), gammal (no)

  Nynorsk: gamal, gammal

• Persian: ساله (fa) (sâle)
• Polish: stary (pl)
• Portuguese: de (pt), com (pt)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: стар

  Roman: star (sh)

• Slovak: starý (sk)
• Slovene: stàr (sl)
• Sorbian:
• Spanish: de (es) + period of time, que tener + period of time + unit of time
• Swedish: gammal (sv)
• Tagalog: luma, dati
• Turkish: number + yaşında
• Vietnamese: tuổi (vi)
• West Frisian: âld (fy)
• Yiddish: ־יעריק (-yerik), ־יאָריק (-yorik)

(of an item) used, not new

• Bashkir: иҫке (iśke)
• Bulgarian: изпо́лзван (bg) (izpólzvan), износен (bg) (iznosen)
• Dutch: oud (nl)
• French: vieux (fr)
• German: alt (de)
• Greek:

  Ancient: παλαιός (palaiós)

• Hungarian: régi (hu), használt (hu)
• Latin: vetus (la)
• Lombard: vegg (lmo) m, veggia (lmo) f
• Louisiana Creole French: vyé
• Persian: کهنه (fa) (kohne)
• Plautdietsch: oolt
• Polish: stary (pl)
• Portuguese: usado (pt)
• Quechua: thanta
• Scottish Gaelic: sean
• Spanish: usado (es), gastado (es)
• Swahili: -kuukuu
• Vietnamese: cũ (vi)

tiresome

• Bashkir: ялҡытҡан (yalqıtqan), биҙрәткән (biźrətkən)
• Bulgarian: доса́ден (bg) (dosáden), на вто́ра ръка́ (na vtóra rǎká)
• French: ça commence à bien faire (fr)
• German: alt (de)
• Hiligaynon: baúg
• Hungarian: fárasztó (hu)
• Portuguese: cansativo (pt)
• Vietnamese: chán (vi)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Mandarin:

  Simplified: ^{(please verify)} 过时的 (zh) (guòshí de)

  Traditional: ^{(please verify)} 過時的／过时的 (zh) (guòshí de)

• Interlingua: ^{(please verify)} ancian
• Irish: ^{(please verify)} críonna
• Manchu: ^{(please verify)} fe

Noun

old (plural olds)

1. (with the, invariable plural only) People who are old; old beings; the older generation, taken as a group.

   A civilised society should always look after the old in the community.

2. (slang) A person older than oneself, especially an adult in relation to a teenager.
3. (slang, most often plural) One's parents.

   I had to sneak out to meet my girlfriend and tell the olds I was going to the library.

4. (Australia, uncountable) A typically dark-coloured lager brewed by the traditional top-fermentation method.
   • 2010, Peter Corris, Torn Apart, Allen and Unwin, page 117:

     We crossed to the pub on the corner of Carlisle Street and I ordered two schooners of old for him and one of light for me.

Anagrams

• DLO, DOL, Dol, LDO, LOD, Lo'd, LoD, Lod, dol, lod

Danish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɔlˀ/, [ˈʌlˀ]

Etymology 1

From Old Norse ǫld, from Proto-Germanic *aldiz, cognate with Gothic 𐌰𐌻𐌳𐍃 (alds).

Noun

old c (singular definite olden, not used in plural form)

1. (archaic) period, age, generation
   • 1813, N.F.S. Grundtvig, “Kristjan den sjette”, in Poetiske Skrifter, volume 3, page 306:

     Hvad der bygtes i din Old, Bygtes som paa Grus og Sand.

     What was built in your age was built as if on gravel and sand.

   • 1805, Adam Oehleschläger, Isefjorden‎^[1]:

     Hvor de tykke Piller favne / Støvet af de store Navne, / Som ei døer, ei blier forgiettet, / Naar min Old er længst udslettet.

     Where the massive columns embrace the dust of the great names that will not die, will not be forgotten when my generation has been obliterated for a long time.

2. (archaic, rare) antiquity
   • 1891, Holger Drachmann, Vildt og tæmmet, section 299:

     Andenlæreren var en Sværmer, og en fanatisk Sværmer, for den nordiske Old.

     The teaching assistant was an enthusiast, a fanatic enthusiast, for the Nordic Antiquity.

Declension

Declension of old

common gender	Singular
	indefinite	definite
nominative	old	olden
genitive	olds	oldens

Derived terms

• hedenold
• old-
• olding
• oldsag
• oldtid

 

References

• “Old,1” in Ordbog over det danske Sprog

Etymology 2

Clipping of oldtidskundskab.

Noun

old c (uninflected)

1. Classical Civilization (a course in secondary school)

   Synonym: oldtidskundskab

Derived terms

• oldlærer

References

• “old” in Den Danske Ordbog

German Low German

Alternative forms

• oold, ol, olt

Etymology

From Middle Low German ôlt. The A became an O through the effect of the velarised L in the same manner as in Dutch oud.

Cognate with English old, Dutch oud, German alt, West Frisian âld.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɔːɫt/

Adjective

old (comparative öller, superlative öllst)

1. old

Declension

Positive forms of old

gender		singular			plural
		masculine	feminine	neuter	all genders
predicative		he is old	se is old	dat is old	se sünd old
partitive		een olls	een olls	wat olls	allens oll
strong declension (without article)	nominative	olle	olle	old	olle
	oblique	ollen	olle	old	olle
weak declension (with definite article)	nominative	de olle	de olle	dat olle	de ollen
	oblique	den ollen	de olle	dat olle	de ollen
mixed declension (with indefinite article)	nominative	en olle/ollen	en olle	en old/ollet	(keen) ollen
	oblique	en ollen	en olle	en old/ollet	(keen) ollen

Comparative forms of old

gender		singular			plural
		masculine	feminine	neuter	all genders
predicative		he is öller	se is öller	dat is öller	se sünd öller
partitive		een öllers	een öllers	wat öllers	allens öller
strong declension (without article)	nominative	öllere	öllere	öller	öllere
	oblique	öllern	öllere	öller	öllere
weak declension (with definite article)	nominative	de öllere	de öllere	dat öllere	de öllern
	oblique	den öllern	de öllere	dat öllere	de öllern
mixed declension (with indefinite article)	nominative	en öllere/ölleren	en öllere	en öller	(keen) öllern
	oblique	en öllern	en öllere	en öller	(keen) öllern

Superlative forms of old

gender		singular			plural
		masculine	feminine	neuter	all genders
predicative		he is de Öllste	se is de Öllste	dat is dat Öllste	se sünd de Öllsten
strong declension (without article)	nominative	öllste	öllste	öllst	öllste
	oblique	öllsten	öllste	öllst	öllste
weak declension (with definite article)	nominative	de öllste	de öllste	dat öllste	de öllsten
	oblique	den öllsten	de öllste	dat öllste	de öllsten
mixed declension (with indefinite article)	nominative	en öllste/öllsten	en öllste	en öllst	(keen) öllsten
	oblique	en öllsten	en öllste	en öllst	(keen) öllsten

Note: This declension is one of many; neither its grammar nor spelling apply to all dialects.

Descendants

• → German: oll

Hungarian

Etymology

From Proto-Uralic *aŋa- (“to loosen, open (up), untie”) + -d (frequentative suffix).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈold]

• Audio

  (file)

• Homophone: oldd
• Rhymes: -old

Verb

old

1. (transitive) to solve
2. (transitive) to untie

Conjugation

conjugation of old

Click for archaic forms			1st person sg	2nd person sg informal	3rd person sg, 2nd p. sg formal	1st person pl	2nd person pl informal	3rd person pl, 2nd p. pl formal
Indica­tive mood	Pre­sent	Indef.	oldok	oldasz	old	oldunk	oldotok	oldanak
		Def.	oldom	oldod	oldja	oldjuk	oldjátok	oldják
		2nd-p. o.	oldalak	―
	Past	Indef.	oldottam	oldottál	oldott	oldottunk	oldottatok	oldottak
		Def.	oldottam	oldottad	oldotta	oldottuk	oldottátok	oldották
		2nd-p. o.	oldottalak	―
	Future		Future is expressed with a present-tense verb with a completion-marking prefix and/or a time adverb, or—more explicitly—with the infinitive plus the conjugated auxiliary verb fog, e.g. oldani fog.
	Archaic Preterit	Indef.	oldék	oldál	olda	oldánk	oldátok	oldának
		Def.	oldám	oldád	oldá	oldánk	oldátok	oldák
		2nd-p. o.	oldálak	―
	Archaic Past		Two additional past tenses: the present and the (current) past forms followed by vala (volt), e.g. old vala, oldott vala/volt.
	Archaic Future	Indef.	oldandok	oldandasz	oldand	oldandunk	oldandotok	oldandanak
		Def.	oldandom	oldandod	oldandja	oldandjuk	oldandjátok	oldandják
		2nd-p. o.	oldandalak	―
Condi­tional mood	Pre­sent	Indef.	oldanék	oldanál	oldana	oldanánk	oldanátok	oldanának
		Def.	oldanám	oldanád	oldaná	oldanánk (or oldanók)	oldanátok	oldanák
		2nd-p. o.	oldanálak	―
	Past		Indicative past forms followed by volna, e.g. oldott volna
Sub­junc­tive mood	Pre­sent	Indef.	oldjak	oldj or oldjál	oldjon	oldjunk	oldjatok	oldjanak
		Def.	oldjam	oldd or oldjad	oldja	oldjuk	oldjátok	oldják
		2nd-p. o.	oldjalak	―
	(Archaic) Past		Indicative past forms followed by légyen, e.g. oldott légyen
Infinitive	oldani		oldanom	oldanod	oldania	oldanunk	oldanotok	oldaniuk
Other forms	Verbal noun		Present part.	Past part.	Future part.	Adverbial participle		Causative
	oldás		oldó	oldott	oldandó	oldva (oldván)
The archaic passive conjugation had the same -(t)at/-(t)et suffix as the causative, followed by -ik in the 3rd-person singular (and the concomitant changes in conditional and subjunctive mostly in the 1st- and 3rd-person singular like with other traditional -ik verbs).

potential conjugation of old

Click for archaic forms			1st person sg	2nd person sg informal	3rd person sg, 2nd p. sg formal	1st person pl	2nd person pl informal	3rd person pl, 2nd p. pl formal
Indica­tive mood	Pre­sent	Indef.	oldhatok	oldhatsz	oldhat	oldhatunk	oldhattok	oldhatnak
		Def.	oldhatom	oldhatod	oldhatja	oldhatjuk	oldhatjátok	oldhatják
		2nd-p. o.	oldhatlak	―
	Past	Indef.	oldhattam	oldhattál	oldhatott	oldhattunk	oldhattatok	oldhattak
		Def.	oldhattam	oldhattad	oldhatta	oldhattuk	oldhattátok	oldhatták
		2nd-p. o.	oldhattalak	―
	Archaic Preterit	Indef.	oldhaték	oldhatál	oldhata	oldhatánk	oldhatátok	oldhatának
		Def.	oldhatám	oldhatád	oldhatá	oldhatánk	oldhatátok	oldhaták
		2nd-p. o.	oldhatálak	―
	Archaic Past		Two additional past tenses: the present and the (current) past forms followed by vala, e.g. oldhat vala, oldhatott vala/volt.
	Archaic Future	Indef.	oldhatandok or oldandhatok	oldhatandasz or oldandhatsz	oldhatand or oldandhat	oldhatandunk or oldandhatunk	oldhatandotok or oldandhattok	oldhatandanak or oldandhatnak
		Def.	oldhatandom or oldandhatom	oldhatandod or oldandhatod	oldhatandja or oldandhatja	oldhatandjuk or oldandhatjuk	oldhatandjátok or oldandhatjátok	oldhatandják or oldandhatják
		2nd-p. o.	oldhatandalak or oldandhatlak	―
Condi­tional mood	Pre­sent	Indef.	oldhatnék	oldhatnál	oldhatna	oldhatnánk	oldhatnátok	oldhatnának
		Def.	oldhatnám	oldhatnád	oldhatná	oldhatnánk (or oldhatnók)	oldhatnátok	oldhatnák
		2nd-p. o.	oldhatnálak	―
	Past		Indicative past forms followed by volna, e.g. oldhatott volna
Sub­junc­tive mood	Pre­sent	Indef.	oldhassak	oldhass or oldhassál	oldhasson	oldhassunk	oldhassatok	oldhassanak
		Def.	oldhassam	oldhasd or oldhassad	oldhassa	oldhassuk	oldhassátok	oldhassák
		2nd-p. o.	oldhassalak	―
	(Archaic) Past		Indicative past forms followed by légyen, e.g. oldhatott légyen
Inf.	(oldhatni)		(oldhatnom)	(oldhatnod)	(oldhatnia)	(oldhatnunk)	(oldhatnotok)	(oldhatniuk)
Positive adjective			oldható	Neg. adj.	oldhatatlan	Adv. part.	(oldhatva / oldhatván)

Derived terms

• oldat
• oldatlan
• oldható
• oldoz
• oldódik

 

(With verbal prefixes):

• elold
• felold
• kiold
• leold
• megold

Expressions

• kereket old

 

Further reading

• old in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (‘The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language’, abbr.: ÉrtSz.). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN

Middle Low German

Adjective

old

1. Alternative spelling of ôlt.