age

Definition of age

Pronunciation

• IPA: /eɪʤ/, SAMPA: /eIdZ/
• Audio (US) ^[?]
• Rhymes: -eɪdʒ

Etymology

From Middle English age from Anglo-Norman age from Old French aage, eage (Modern French âge), from assumed unattested Vulgar Latin *aetāticum from Latin aetātem, accusative form of aetās from aevum ("lifetime"). Displaced native Middle English elde "age" (from Old English eldo, ieldo "age").

Noun

age (plural ages)

1. The whole duration of a being, whether animal, vegetable, or other kind; lifetime.
2. That part of the duration of a being or a thing which is between its beginning and any given time.
   
   What is the present age of a man, or of the earth?
   
   
3. The latter part of life; an advanced period of life, eld; seniority; state of being old.
   
   Wisdom doesn't necessarily come with age.
   Sometimes age just shows up all by itself.
   
   
4. One of the stages of life; as, the age of infancy, of youth, etc.
5. Mature age; especially, the time of life at which one attains full personal rights and capacities.
   
   to come of age
   he (or she) is of age
   
   
6. The time of life at which some particular power or capacity is understood to become vested.
   
   the age of consent
   the age of discretion
   
   
7. A particular period of time in history, as distinguished from others.
   
   the golden age
   the age of Pericles
   
   
8. A great period in the history of the Earth.
9. A century; the period of one hundred years.
10. The people who live at a particular period.
11. Hence, a generation.
    
    There are three ages living in her house.
    
    
12. A long time.
    
    It's been an age since we last saw you.

Synonyms

• (latter part of life): dotage, old age, eld

Verb

to age (third-person singular simple present ages, present participle ageing or (US) aging, simple past and past participle aged)

1. (transitive) To cause to grow old; to impart the characteristics of age to.
   
   Grief ages us.
   
   
2. (transitive, figuratively) To postpone an action that would extinguish something, as a debt.
   
   Money's a little tight right now, let's age our bills for a week or so.
   
   
3. (transitive, accounting) To categorize by age.
   
   One his first assignments was to age the accounts receivable.
   
   
4. (intransitive) To grow aged; to become old; to show marks of age.
   
   He grew fat as he aged.

External links

• age in Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• age in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911

Anagrams

• Alphagram: aeg
• EGA
• G. E. A.