Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense ages, present participle ageing, present participle aging, past tense, past participle agedlanguage note: The spelling aging is also used, mainly in American English.
1. variable noun
Your age is the number of years that you have lived.
She has a nephew who is just ten years of age.
At the age of sixteen he qualified for a place at the University of Hamburg. [+ of]
I admired him for being so confident at his age.
2. variable noun
The age of a thing is the number of years since it was made.
Everything in the room looks in keeping with the age of the building. [+ of]
3. uncountable noun
Age is the state of being old or the process of becoming older.
Perhaps he has grown wiser with age.
The fabric was showing signs of age.
The worst sign of age was in the fabric which looked decidedly ancient.
Synonyms: old age, experience, maturity, completion More Synonyms of age
4. verb
When someone ages, or when something ages them, they seem much older and less strong or less alert.
He had always looked so young, but he seemed to have aged in the last few months. [VERB]
He was only in his mid-thirties, but already worry had aged him. [VERB noun]
Synonyms: grow old, decline, weather, fade More Synonyms of age
5. ergative verb
When food or alcohol is aged or when it ages, it is left to get older before being eaten or drunk, so that it develops a better flavour.
Balsamic vinegar is aged in wood for at least 10 years and the flavour is wonderful. [V-ed in]
Whisky loses strength as it ages. [VERB]
[Also VERB noun]
Synonyms: mature, season, condition, soften More Synonyms of age
6. countable noun
An age is a period in history.
...the age of steam and steel. [+ of]
...items of Bronze Age pottery.
Synonyms: time, day(s), period, generation More Synonyms of age
7. countable noun
You can say an age or ages to mean a very long time.
[informal]
He waited what seemed an age.
The bus took absolutely ages to arrive.
Synonyms: a long time, years, forever, a lifetime More Synonyms of age
8. See also aged, ageing, coming of age, dark age, golden age, Ice Age, Iron Age, middle age, Stone Age
9.
See to act one's age
10.
See come of age
11.
See come of age
12.
See under age
More Synonyms of age
age in British English
(eɪdʒ)
noun
1.
the period of time that a person, animal, or plant has lived or is expected to live
the age of a tree
what age was he when he died?
the age of a horse is up to thirty years
2.
the period of existence of an object, material, group, etc
the age of this table is 200 years
3.
a.
a period or state of human life
he should know better at his age
the tricky age when peer pressure comes into play
b.
(as modifier)
age group
4.
the latter part of life
5.
a.
a period of history marked by some feature or characteristic; era
b.
(capital when part of a name)
the Middle Ages
the Space Age
6.
generation
the Edwardian age
7. geology, palaeontology
a.
a period of the earth's history distinguished by special characteristics
the age of reptiles
b.
the period during which a stage of rock strata is formed; a subdivision of an epoch
8. mythology
any of the successive periods in the legendary history of humankind, which were, according to Hesiod, the golden, silver, bronze, heroic, and iron ages
9. (often plural) informal
a relatively long time
they spent an age at the showroom
I've been waiting ages
10. psychology
the level in years that a person has reached in any area of development, such as mental or emotional, compared with the normal level for his chronological age
See also achievement age, mental age
11. age before beauty
12. of age
verbWord forms: ages, ageing, aging or aged
13.
to grow or make old or apparently old; become or cause to become old or aged
14.
to begin to seem older
he seems to have aged a lot in the past year
15. brewing
to mature or cause to mature
Word origin
C13: via Old French from Vulgar Latin aetatīcum (unattested), from Latin aetās, ultimately from aevum lifetime; compare aeon
-age in British English
suffix forming nouns
1.
indicating a collection, set, or group
acreage
baggage
2.
indicating a process or action or the result of an action
haulage
passage
breakage
3.
indicating a state, condition, or relationship
bondage
parentage
4.
indicating a house or place
orphanage
5.
indicating a charge or fee
postage
6.
indicating a rate
dosage
mileage
Word origin
from Old French, from Late Latin -āticum, noun suffix, neuter of -āticus, adjectival suffix, from -ātus-ate1 + -icus-ic
age in American English
(eɪdʒ)
noun
1.
the time that a person or a thing has existed since birth or beginning
2.
usual or expected life span
the age of a medieval peasant was quite short
3.
a stage of life
she is at the awkward age
4.
the condition of being old; old age
wearied with age
5.
a generation
6.
a.
any interval of geologic time; specif., a subdivision of an epoch corresponding to the rock strata of a stage (sense 13)
b.
any prehistoric cultural period in human development
the Stone Age
c.
a period characterized by some person or by some outstanding feature or influence
the Elizabethan Age, the Space Age
7. [often pl.]; Informal
a long time
verb intransitiveWord forms: aged, ˈaging or ˈageing
8.
to grow old or show signs of growing old
9.
to ripen or become mature
verb transitive
10.
to make, or make seem, old or mature
11.
to cause to ripen or become mature over a period of time under fixed conditions
to age cheese
Idioms:
of age
Word origin
ME < OFr aage < ML *aetaticum < L aetas, contr. < aevitas, akin to aevum, age, eternity < IE base *aiw- > aye1
-age in American English
(ɪdʒ; ədʒ)
1.
act, condition, or result of
marriage, cleavage, usage
2.
amount or number of
acreage
3.
cost of
postage
4.
place of
steerage
5.
collection of
peerage, rootage
6.
home of
hermitage
▶ USAGE: The suffix appears in many words borrowed directly from French into Middle English[savage, voyage]
Word origin
OFr < LL -aticum, belonging to, related to
COBUILD Collocations
age
bygone age
childbearing age
Examples of 'age' in a sentence
age
He'd never known his father, and his mother had also died at a young age.
Jack Higgins THE KEYS OF HELL (2002)
The hips and thighs were thickened by age, and her skin was showing signs of decay.
Jennifer Fallon TREASON KEEP (2002)
Wilshere had stepped out of a novel from a different, more romantic age.
Robert Wilson THE COMPANY OF STRANGERS (2002)
Limbs stiff with age, the feral dog broke from his hiding place in a patch of ferns, lunging at the larva.
Gregg Andrew Hurwitz MINUTES TO BURN (2002)
Quotations
Every man desires to live long, but no man would be oldJonathan SwiftThoughts on Various Subjects
The days of our age are threescore years and tenBible: Psalm 90
Youth, which is forgiven everything, forgives itself nothing; age, which forgives itself anything, is forgivennothingGeorge Bernard ShawMaxims for Revolutionists
With age, the mind grows slower and more wilyMason CooleyCity Aphorisms
Age appears to be best in four things - old wood best to burn, old wine to drink, old friends to trust, and old authors to readFrancis BaconApophthegms, no. 97
If I'd known I was gonna live this long, I'd have taken better care of myselfEubie Blake (on reaching the age of 100)
Grow old along with me! The best is yet to beRobert BrowningRabbi Ben Ezra
There is still no cure for the common birthdayJohn Glenn
In other languages
age
British English: age /eɪdʒ/ NOUN
Your age is the number of years that you have lived.
She has a nephew who is just ten years of age.
American English: age
Arabic: عُمْر
Brazilian Portuguese: idade
Chinese: 年龄
Croatian: dob
Czech: věk
Danish: alder
Dutch: leeftijd
European Spanish: edad
Finnish: ikä
French: âge
German: Alter
Greek: ηλικία
Italian: età
Japanese: 年齢
Korean: 나이
Norwegian: alder
Polish: wiek
European Portuguese: idade
Romanian: vârstă
Russian: возраст
Latin American Spanish: edad
Swedish: ålder
Thai: อายุ
Turkish: yaş yıl
Ukrainian: вік
Vietnamese: tuổi
All related terms of 'age'
of age
adult and legally responsible for one's actions (usually at 18 or, formerly, 21 years)
age gap
a difference in age between two people
age-old
An age-old story , tradition , or problem has existed for many generations or centuries.
ice age
The Ice Age was a period of time lasting many thousands of years , during which a lot of the Earth's surface was covered with ice.
New Age
New Age is used to describe spiritual or non-scientific activities such as meditation , astrology, and alternative medicine, or people who are connected with such activities.
old age
Your old age is the period of years towards the end of your life.
age group
An age group is the people in a place or organization who were born during a particular period of time, for example all the people aged between 18 and 25.
age limit
An age limit is the oldest or youngest age at which you are allowed under particular regulations to do something.
age-mate
a person or animal of the same age , or nearly the same age, as another
age-proof
not adversely affected by a person's age
age range
a range indicating the upper and lower ages considered suitable for a specified thing
age spot
Spots on a person's skin are small lumps or marks.
dark age
If you refer to a period in the history of a society as a dark age , you think that it is characterized by a lack of knowledge and progress.
iron age
The Iron Age was a period of time which began when people started making things from iron about three thousand years ago .
jazz age
a period of U.S. history in the 1920s noted for general prosperity , financial speculation , Prohibition , the emergence of organized crime , profound social, cultural , and literary change, and the influence of jazz
legal age
the age at which a person acquires full legal rights and responsibilities ; majority
moyen âge
the Middle Ages
over-age
If you are over-age , you are officially too old to do something.
space age
The space age is the present period in the history of the world, when travel in space has become possible.
Stone Age
The Stone Age is a very early period of human history , when people used tools and weapons made of stone, not metal.
Third Age
→ the Third Age
under age
Someone who is under age is not legally old enough to do something, for example to buy an alcoholic drink.
age bracket
the group of people born at a particular time
atomic age
the period characterized by the use of atomic energy: regarded as beginning with the creation of the first self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction on December 2, 1942
awkward age
early adolescence
bronze age
The Bronze Age was a period of time which began when people started making things from bronze about 4,000–6,000 years ago .
bygone age
An age is a period in history .
coon's age
a long time
Copper Age
a phase in some human cultures between a Stone Age and a Bronze Age, characterized by the introduction and development of copper tools and weapons : in the Old World this phase is commonly thought of as being part of their Bronze Age
Gilded Age
a period of U.S. history in the 1870s noted for political corruption , financial speculation , and the opulent lives of wealthy industrialists and financiers
golden age
A golden age is a period of time during which a very high level of achievement is reached in a particular field of activity, especially in art or literature.
heroic age
the period in an ancient culture , when legendary heroes are said to have lived
machine age
the period in the early 20th century when there was greater production and more new inventions of machinery than previously, and considered to be at a peak between the first and second world wars
mental age
A person's mental age is the age which they are considered to have reached in their ability to think or reason .
middle age
Middle age is the period in your life when you are no longer young but have not yet become old. Middle age is usually considered to take place between the ages of 40 and 60.
reading age
the level of reading ability that a person has in comparison to an average child of a particular age
school age
When a child reaches school age , he or she is old enough to go to school.
silver age
(in Greek and Roman mythology ) the second of the world's major epochs , inferior to the preceding golden age and characterized by opulence and irreligion
age allowance
an income tax allowance given to taxpayers aged 65 or over
age hardening
the hardening of metals by spontaneous structural changes over a period of time
computer age
modern society regarded as the period when the widespread use of computers has fundamentally changed people's lives
Neolithic Age
the cultural period that lasted in SW Asia from about 9000 to 6000 bc and in Europe from about 4000 to 2400 bc and was characterized by primitive crop growing and stock rearing and the use of polished stone and flint tools and weapons
retiring age
the normal age for retirement
achievement age
the age at which a child should be able to perform a standardized test successfully
a dog's age
a long time
age-appropriate
Something that is age-appropriate is suitable for the age that a person is.
age difference
a disparity in ages between two people
age restriction
A restriction is an official rule that limits what you can do or that limits the amount or size of something.
come of age
If something comes of age , it reaches an important stage of development and is accepted by a large number of people.
educational age
the age at which a child should be able to perform a standardized test successfully
Chinese translation of 'age'
age
(eɪdʒ)
n
(c/u)[of person, object]年龄(齡) (niánlíng)
⇒ I'm the same age as you.我和你同龄。 (Wǒ hé nǐ tónglíng.)
(u) (= being old) 老年 (lǎonián)
⇒ He is showing signs of age.他开始显老了。 (Tā kāishǐ xiǎn lǎo le.)
(c) (= period in history) 时(時)代 (shídài) (个(個), gè)
⇒ We live in an age of uncertainty.我们生活在一个动乱的时代。 (Wǒmen shēnghuó zài yī gè dòngluàn de shídài.)
vi
[person]变(變)老 (biànlǎo)
⇒ He has aged a lot.他变老了许多。 (Tā biànlǎole xǔduō.)
vt
[person]使 ... 见(見)老 (shǐ ... jiànlǎo)
⇒ The worry had aged him.忧愁使他见老了。 (Yōuchóu shǐ tā jiànlǎo le.)
what age is he?他多大了？ (tā duōdà le?)
you don't look your age你看起来(來)与(與)你年纪(紀)不相符 (nǐ kàn qǐlái yǔ nǐ niánjì bù xiāngfú)
20 years of age20岁(歲) (èrshí suì)
at the age of 2020岁(歲)时(時) (èrshí suì shí)
to be under age[person]未成年 (wèichéngnián)
under age smoking/drinking/sex未成年抽烟(煙)/喝酒/性行为(為) (wèichéngnián chōuyān/hējiǔ/xìngxíngwéi)
to come of age[person]达(達)到法定年龄(齡) (dádào fǎdìng niánlíng)
an age, ages (inf) 很长(長)时(時)间(間) (hěn cháng shíjiān)
⇒ I haven't seen you for ages!我很长时间没见到你了！ (Wǒ hěn cháng shíjiān méi jiàndào nǐ le!)
the Stone/Bronze/Iron Age石器/铜(銅)器/铁(鐵)器时(時)代 (shíqì/tóngqì/tiěqì shídài)
the age of steam/television/chivalry蒸汽/电(電)视(視)/骑(騎)士时(時)代 (zhēngqì/diànshì/qíshì shídài)
through the ages历(歷)代 (lìdài)
All related terms of 'age'
New Age
新世纪(紀)的 Xīnshìjì de
old age
( state ) 老年 lǎonián
age group
同一年龄(齡)的人们(們) tóngyī niánlíng de rénmen
age limit
年龄(齡)限制 niánlíng xiànzhì
under-age
( person ) 未成年的 wèi chéngnián de
an age, ages
( inf ) 很长(長)时(時)间(間) hěn cháng shíjiān ⇒ I haven't seen you for ages! → 我很长时间没见到你了！ Wǒ hěn cháng shíjiān méi jiàndào nǐ le!
age of consent
▶ the age of consent 承诺(諾)年龄(齡) chéngnuò niánlíng
old age pension
( state pension ) 退休金 tuìxiūjīn [ 笔 bǐ ] [ 美 = social security benefit, social security payment ]
20 years of age
20岁(歲) èrshí suì
age/income group
年龄(齡)/收入组(組) niánlíng/shōurù zǔ
old age pensioner
( senior citizen ) 拿退休金的人 ná tuìxiūjīn de rén [ 位 wèi ] [ 美 = senior citizen, retiree ]
to be under age
( person ) 未成年 wèichéngnián
to come of age
( person ) 达(達)到法定年龄(齡) dádào fǎdìng niánlíng
what age is he?
他多大了？ tā duōdà le?
at the age of 20
20岁(歲)时(時) èrshí suì shí
she's half his age
她的年龄(齡)是他的一半 tā de niánlíng shì tā de yībàn
the age of consent
承诺(諾)年龄(齡) chéngnuò niánlíng
under-age drinking/sex
未成年人的饮(飲)酒/性行为(為) wèichéngniánrén de yǐnjiǔ/xìng xíngwéi
he's at an awkward age
他正处(處)于(於)爱(愛)找别(彆)扭的年龄(齡) tā zhèng chǔyú ài zhǎo bièniu de niánlíng
he's mature for his age
对(對)他的年龄(齡)而言他算是成熟的 duì tā de niánlíng ér yán tā suànshì chéngshú de
she is twice your age
她年纪(紀)比你大一倍 tā niánjì bǐ nǐ dà yī bèi
the 40 to 50 age group
年龄(齡)在40岁(歲)到50岁(歲)的人们(們) niánlíng zài sìshí suì dào wǔshí suì de rénmen
the length of time that a person or thing has existed
He's very confident for his age.
Synonyms
years
days
generation
lifetime
During my lifetime I haven't got round to much travelling.
stage of life
length of life
length of existence
span
duration
life span
2 (noun)
Definition
the latter part of human life
Perhaps he has grown wiser with age.
Synonyms
old age
They worry about how they will support themselves in their old age.
experience
maturity
Humans experience a delayed maturity compared with other mammals.
completion
seniority
fullness
majority
maturation
senility
decline
advancing years
dotage
He's spending his dotage in a riverside cottage.
declining years
senescence
full growth
agedness
autumn or evening of your life
matureness
Opposites
youth
,
childhood
,
adolescence
,
immaturity
,
young days
,
salad days
,
boyhood or girlhood
,
juvenescence
3 (noun)
Definition
a period of history marked by some feature
the age of steam and steel
Synonyms
time
The design has remained unchanged since the time of the pharaohs.
day(s)
period
the Victorian period
generation
The whole island could become a desert within a generation.
era
a custom pre-dating the Christian era
epoch
the beginning of a major epoch in world history
4 (noun)
I waited what seemed an age.
Synonyms
a long time
years
forever
a lifetime
an eternity
aeons
yonks (informal)
Opposites
a second
,
a moment
,
an instant
,
a short time
,
a flash
,
a little while
,
a split second
,
no time at all
,
a jiffy (informal)
,
two shakes of a lamb's tail (informal)
,
the twinkling or wink of an eye
(plural noun)
Definition
a long time
(informal)
The bus took ages to arrive.
Synonyms
a long time or while
years
centuries
for ever (informal)
aeons
donkey's years (informal)
I made them last for donkey's years.
yonks (informal)
a month of Sundays (informal)
an age or eternity
1 (verb)
Definition
to become old
He seemed to have aged in the last few months.
Synonyms
grow old
decline
Her father's health has declined significantly in recent months.
weather
fade
After that all her worries faded away.
deteriorate
X-rays are used to prevent fresh food from deteriorating.
wither
His dream of being a famous footballer withered and died.
2 (verb)
Definition
to appear or cause to appear older
Cheese can be tastier as it ages.
Synonyms
mature
the cellars where the cheeses are matured
season
Ensure that the new wood has been seasoned.
condition
soften
mellow
She has mellowed with age.
ripen
I'm waiting for the apples to ripen.
idiom
See come of age
Quotations
Every man desires to live long, but no man would be old [Jonathan Swift – Thoughts on Various Subjects]The days of our age are threescore years and ten [Bible: Psalm 90]Youth, which is forgiven everything, forgives itself nothing; age, which forgives itself anything, is forgiven nothing [George Bernard Shaw – Maxims for Revolutionists]With age, the mind grows slower and more wily [Mason Cooley – City Aphorisms]Age appears to be best in four things - old wood best to burn, old wine to drink, old friends to trust, and old authors to read [Francis Bacon – Apophthegms, no. 97]If I'd known I was gonna live this long, I'd have taken better care of myself [Eubie Blake (on reaching the age of 100)]Grow old along with me! The best is yet to be [Robert Browning – Rabbi Ben Ezra]There is still no cure for the common birthday [John Glenn]
Additional synonyms
in the sense of decline
Definition
to become smaller, weaker, or less important
Her father's health has declined significantly in recent months.
Synonyms
deteriorate,
fade,
weaken,
pine,
decay,
worsen,
lapse,
languish,
degenerate,
droop
in the sense of deteriorate
X-rays are used to prevent fresh food from deteriorating.