old*/*/*/

[əʊld]

adj

1) used for talking about the age of someone or something

I'm older than my brother.[/ex]

She's the oldest girl in the class.[/ex]

A woman stood watching with her 3-year-old (= child who is 3).[/ex]

How old are you? I'm 5 years old.[/ex]

He's not old enough to see this film.[/ex]

2) someone who is old has lived a long time

Ant:

young

A lot of old people live alone.[/ex]

I hope I'll still be able to play golf when I get old.[/ex]

3) something that is old has existed or been used for a long time

an old belief[/ex]

I finally replaced my old sewing machine.[/ex]

Trees are the oldest living things on the planet.[/ex]

I'm meeting an old friend for lunch.[/ex]

4) used for describing something that existed, happened, or was used in the past

‘Thy' is an old way of saying ‘your'.[/ex]

The old motorway only had two lanes.[/ex]

I still get letters from some of my old students (= people that I taught in the past).[/ex]

•

for old times' sake — so that you can remember a happy time in the past[/ex]

your old self — the type of person you usually are, especially when you have not been feeling as healthy or happy as usual[/ex]

your old self — the way you normally were in the past, before something happened[/ex]

Now you sound like your old self again![/ex]

Words that may cause offence: old Avoid saying that someone is old or elderly, and avoid referring to old or elderly people as the old or the elderly. Instead, use expressions such as older people, retired people, seniors, or the over 50s/60s etc