nonagenarian

noun no·na·ge·nar·i·an \ ˌnō-nə-jə-ˈner-ē-ən , ˌnä- \

Updated on: 17 Apr 2018

Definition of nonagenarian

: a person whose age is in the nineties

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nonagenarian

adjective

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Recent Examples of nonagenarian from the Web

The study attributed that to the strong-willed nature of those nonagenarians, who spoke to researchers about their beliefs, history of migration, family and country.

— josh magness, miamiherald, "Just can’t ‘let it go’? You’ll pay later for holding on to all that stress, study says," 10 Apr. 2018
Virginia McCaskey, Bears owner and secretary, has quickly become fond of her fellow nonagenarian, according to McCaskey’s son, George.

— rich campbell, chicagotribune.com, "Sister Jean has a fan in fellow nonagenarian Virginia McCaskey," 28 Mar. 2018
The study results also showed that nonagenarians who exercised 15 to 45 minutes per day cut their risk of premature death by 11 percent.

— sarah rense, Esquire, "The Key to Living Over the Age of 90 Might Be Drinking Alcohol," 28 Feb. 2018
The number of nonagenarians in the U.S. has more than tripled since 1980, to 2.5 million, according to the Census Bureau, which projects that there will be 8 million in that age group by 2050.

— mark penn, WSJ, "Small Trends Can Be BIG," 16 Mar. 2018
Even the Arab world’s lone true democracy has elected a nonagenarian.

— The Economist, "Indisposed graybeards rule over much of the Arab world," 15 Mar. 2018
The study was performed by Dr. Claudia Kawas of the University of California, who researched more than 1,600 nonagenarians starting in 2003.

— sarah rense, Esquire, "The Key to Living Over the Age of 90 Might Be Drinking Alcohol," 28 Feb. 2018
Claire, a petite, feisty and limber nonagenarian who used to be a showgirl and a Palm Springs Follies dancer, performed in Cyrus’ Younger Now video.

— denise goolsby, USA TODAY, "Miley Cyrus sends gift, greetings to 90-year-old Bingo caller," 6 Feb. 2018
After this long, strange awards trip, the Bagger feels like a nonagenarian, too.

— cara buckley, New York Times, "What to Expect (and Not Expect) at the Oscars," 1 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'nonagenarian.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of nonagenarian

Latin nonagenarius containing ninety, from nonageni ninety each, from nonaginta ninety, from nona- (akin to novem nine) + -ginta (akin to viginti twenty) — more at nine, vigesimal

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First Known Use: 1804

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