old
adjective
uk/əʊld/us/oʊld/oldadjective(NOT YOUNG/NEW)
A1
havinglivedorexistedfor manyyears:
老的；年老的；古老的an old man老人
We're allgettingolder.我们都老了。
I wasshockedby how old helooked.他看上去那么老让我很震惊。
Now come on, you're oldenoughtotieyourownshoelaces, Carlos.好，来吧，卡洛斯，你那么大了，该自己系鞋带了。
I'm too oldtobe out in theclubseverynight.我老大不小了，不能每晚总在夜总会里胡混。
abeautifuloldfarmhousein thecountry乡下一间漂亮的古老农舍
abatteredoldcar残破的旧汽车
That's an oldjoke- I'veheardit about a thousandtimes.那是个老掉牙的笑话——我听过不知多少次了。
Ithinkthischeeseis old,judgingby thesmellof it.从气味上判断，我觉得这块奶酪有点陈了。
having lived for many years
- oldHe was an old man.
- elderlyA large number of elderly people live alone.
- the elderlyMany among the elderly cannot afford to pay their electricity bills.
- agedHe has to look after his aged aunt.
- ageingUKThe ageing chairman was forced to retire.
too olddisapproving(UKalsoa bit old);(USalsoa little old)
unsuitablebecauseintendedfor olderpeople:
（因目标使用者为年龄更大一些的人而）不适合的Don't youthinkthatbookis too old for you?你不觉得这本书是给年龄大一些的人看的，对你来说不合适吗？
- Agroupof old mensatplayingdominoes.
- Manybuildingsin the oldpartof thecityarefallingdown, and thegovernmenthas nomoneytorepairthem.
- Aspeopleget older, they oftenbecomeset intheirways.
- It would be asacrilegeto put aneonsignon thatbeautifuloldbuilding.
- There's somewonderfulcalligraphyin these oldmanuscripts.
Describing people who are old
- aged
- ageing
- ageless
- as old as Methuselahidiom
- auntie
- elderly
- for a man/woman/person of his/her yearsidiom
- gaga
- geriatric
- grand old ageidiom
- gray
- grey
- have hadits/yourdayidiom
- have one foot in the graveidiom
- hoary
- sprightliness
- sprightly
- spry
- superannuated
- year
You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Old or old-fashioned
oldadjective(WHAT AGE)
A1
used todescribeoraskabout someone'sage:
…岁的Howold isyourfather?你父亲多大年龄了？
Rosie's sixyearsold now.罗茜现在6岁了。
It's not verydignifiedbehaviourfor a 54-year-old man.对于一个54岁的人来说，这种行为太有失体面了。
He's acoupleofyearsolder than me.他比我大几岁。
- Anadultunder Britishlawis someone over 18yearsold.
- Mostchildrenin the UKremaininfull-timeeducationuntil they are at least 16yearsold.
- How old is hisdaughter?
- Thetrialwasheldincamerabecause theaccusedwas only 14yearsold.
- Heaskedme how old I was and,lyingthrough myteeth, I said '29'.
Describing age & birthdays
- age
- age group
- age limit
- aged
- babyboomer
- gone
- junior
- knock
- millennial
- nonagenarian
- octogenarian
- on the right/wrong side of40, 50, etc.idiom
- ripe
- senior
- something
- spring chicken
- take years offsomeoneidiom
- teens
- this side ofsomethingidiom
- twenty-first
oldadjective(FROM THE PAST)
A2[before noun]
from aperiodin the past:
过去的；旧时的，从前的，以前的Isawmy oldEnglishteacherlasttimeI wenthome.上次我回家时见到了我从前的英语老师。
Heboughtme a newphonetoreplacemy old one.他给我买了一个新电话取代了那个旧的。
Sheshowedme her oldschool.她领我参观了她的母校。
Isawan oldboyfriendof mine.我看见了我的一个前男友。
In my oldjobI had lessresponsibility.我以前的那份工作职责没有这么多。
Synonym
former
coming from a time in the past
- oldBe careful - that clock is very old.
- formerHe's a former coworker of mine.
- ancientWe need to protect ancient monuments.
- archaic"Thee" is an archaic word for "you".
- After sixmonthsofchoppingandchanging, we'vedecidedto go back toouroldsystem.
- Just bycoincidence, Imetmy old school-mate again 50yearslater.
- It will onlycomplicatethesituationif weinvitehis oldgirlfriendas well.
- The new Prime Minister iscultivatingrelationshipswith oldEasternBloccountries.
- The newhouseis notdissimilartoourold one except that it's abitbigger.
In the past
- ago
- any moreidiom
- anymore
- back in the dayidiom
- back thenidiom
- clock
- departed
- dim
- flood
- many moons agoidiom
- mist
- moon
- more
- no longeridiom
- rewind the clockidiom
- sometime
- step
- step back (in time)idiom
- the mists of timeidiom
- the status quo ante
oldadjective(LANGUAGE)
Old English, French, etc.
alanguagewhen it was in an earlystageinitsdevelopment
古英语／法语等Forms of languages & specialist dialects
- acrolect
- argot
- basilect
- cant
- colloquialism
- functional
- journalese
- legalese
- lingo
- lingua franca
- metalanguage
- MFL
- oral
- pidgin
- plain English
- Polari
- rhyming slang
- slang
- slangy
- tongue
oldadjective(VERY FAMILIAR)
A2[before noun]
(especiallyof afriend)knownfor alongtime:
（尤指朋友）老的，结识久的She's one of my oldestfriends- wemetinkindergarten.她是我的老朋友之一——我们上幼儿园时就认识了。
[before noun]informal
used before someone'snamewhen you are referring to ortalkingto them, to show that youknowthatpersonwell and like them:
（用于人名前表示亲密、熟识的称呼）老…There's old Saraworkingaway in thecorner.老萨拉在角落里埋头苦干。
Ihearpoorold Frank'slosthisjob.我听说可怜的老弗兰克失业了。
- Dasheddecentof you, oldboy!
- They did a few oldhitsas/for anencore.
- "I can'teatthismeat- it's tootough." "You oldfusspot- give it here and I'lleatit!"
- He's amiserableoldgit.
- He's aninsipidoldbore.
Lasting for a long time
- all-night
- ancient
- be going strongidiom
- changeless
- dateless
- full time
- immemorial
- incorruptibility
- incorruptible
- incorruptibly
- long-time
- longevity
- man and boyidiom
- never-ending
- nondurable
- time-consuming
- timeless
- timelessly
- timelessness
- year
You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Relationships: general words
Grammar
Elder,eldestorolder,oldest?
Elder and eldest mean the same as older and oldest. We only use the adjectives elder and eldest before a noun (as attributive adjectives), and usually when talking about relationships within a family:…Idioms
be (as) old as the hills
for old times' sake
of old
of the old school
the oldest profession (in the world)
the oldest trick in the book
old
noun[plural]
uk/əʊld/us/oʊld/the old
oldpeopleconsideredtogether as agroup:
老年人，长者Thesecutsinserviceswillparticularlyaffectthe old.许多服务项目被取消，这样做对老年人的影响尤其大。
- The old areparticularlyvulnerableto thesefraudsters.
- Theseholidaysareaimedat the old.
- The oldtendto have a differentperspectiveonwar.
The elderly
- a ripe old ageidiom
- age
- aged
- ageism
- ageist
- agism
- crock
- geriatric
- geriatrics
- gerontological
- gerontology
- infirmity
- nonagenarian
- pension fund
- pensioner
- rest home
- senility
- the gray dollar
- the grey market
- the grey pound