elder

1 of 3

noun (1)

el·der ˈel-dər

Synonyms of elder next

: elderberry sense 2

elder

2 of 3

adjective

: of earlier birth or greater age

his elder brother

: of or relating to earlier times : former

archaic : of or relating to a more advanced time of life

: prior or superior in rank, office, or validity

elder

3 of 3

noun (2)

: one living in an earlier period

: one who is older : senior

a child trying to please her elders

: an aged person

: one having authority by virtue of age and experience

the village elders

: any of various officers of religious groups: such as

: presbyter sense 1

: a permanent officer elected by a Presbyterian congregation and ordained to serve on the session and assist the pastor at communion

: minister sense 2

: a leader of the Shakers

: a Mormon ordained to the Melchizedek priesthood

eldership

ˈel-dər-ˌship

noun

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The other, 30 years his elder, typing fingers raw about the Padres on the other side of the Peoria Sports Complex shared by the teams. —

Bryce Millercolumnist, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Feb. 2023 Having signed her own recording contract at age 19, Houston was, by her 30s, something of an industry elder. —

Emily Lordi, New York Times, 8 Feb. 2023 This seems like a healthy way for anyone, not just children to consume social media: through an elder's phone. —

Carrie Wittmer, Glamour, 30 Dec. 2022 The political misdirection in the face of an elder who was sent to the hospital with a fractured skull isn’t just a reminder of how terrible the country’s politics have become. —

Robin Givhan, Washington Post, 1 Nov. 2022 Xi is the hard-driving son of a Communist elder, while the mild-mannered Hu hails from a family of tea merchants and trained as an engineer. —

BostonGlobe.com, 23 Oct. 2022 Condors are very social, explains Sharon Levy, learning best and benefitting from being under the wing of an elder. —

Longreads, 1 July 2022 No Way Home and Tick, Tick… Boom!, FX has released the first trailer for Under the Banner of Heaven, which stars Garfield as Detective Pyre, a Utah cop and Church of Latter-day Saints elder who is committed to his faith and his family. —

Nick Romano, EW.com, 23 Feb. 2022 Madlib’s near-opus Sound Ancestors, released on the earlier and slightly more optimistic side of the year, was like soaking in the wisdom of an elder. —

Sage Anderson, Rolling Stone, 23 Dec. 2021

Adjective

Because of a shortage of elder-care infrastructure and workers, many of them will face the disease with far too little support. —

Marion Renault, The New Yorker, 23 Nov. 2022 In 1988, Rinke's elder brother and two other pilots died when their training flight crashed just after takeoff at what was then Oakland-Pontiac Airport in Waterford. —

Paul Egan, Detroit Free Press, 4 Apr. 2022 In October 2021, Representative John Larsen (D–CT) introduced a comprehensive plan to save Social Security and eliminate elder poverty. —

Teresa Ghilarducci, Forbes, 3 Jan. 2022 See More

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