- age
- {{Roman}}I.{{/Roman}} noun1 how old sb/sth is ⇨ See also ↑old ageADJECTIVE▪ early, tender, young▪
He was sent away to school at an early age.
▪ advanced, great, old, ripe▪He was still active even at the advanced age of 87.
▪White hair is a sign of great age.
▪She dreaded old age.
▪ advancing, increasing▪ middle, third (BrE)▪a pleasant woman in early middle age
▪ childbearing, pensionable (BrE), retirement, school, school-leaving (BrE)▪children of school age
▪ drinking, voting, working▪ mental, reading (esp. BrE)VERB + AGE▪ attain, get to, live to, reach▪When you get to my age you get a different perspective on life.
▪She lived to the age of 75.
▪ act, feel, look▪Act your age!
▪She was beginning to feel her age (= feel that she was getting old).
▪ lower, raise▪The voting age was lowered from 21 to 18 years.
AGE + NOUN▪ group, range▪ limitPREPOSITION▪ at a/the age▪At your age I had already started work.
▪ between the ages▪children between the ages of five and eleven
▪ by the age▪He could read by the age of four.
▪ for sb's age▪He's quite a big boy for his age.
▪ over (the) age▪Twelve million people are over retirement age.
▪ under age▪It is illegal to sell alcohol to children who are under age (= not legally old enough).
▪ under the age▪It is illegal to sell alcohol to children under the age of 18.
▪ with age▪A lot of wines improve with age.
▪ age of▪He left school at the age of 18.
PHRASES▪ the age of consent▪The general age of consent for sexual activity is 16.
▪ sb's own age▪She needs a friend of her own age to play with.
▪ years of age▪He's 20 years of age.
2 period of historyADJECTIVE▪ another, bygone, different▪This exquisite little hotel seemed to belong to a different age.
▪ Bronze, Ice, Stone▪ computer, digital, industrial, modern, nuclear, etc.▪ Elizabethan, Victorian, etc.▪ golden▪the golden age of Hollywood
PREPOSITION▪ during the … age▪He lived during the Victorian age.
▪ in a/the age▪She lived in an age when few women became politicians.
▪ through the ages▪an exhibition of Islamic art through the ages
▪ age of▪the age of the computer
PHRASES▪ in this day and age (= in the period we now live in)▪Why dress so formally in this day and age?
3 ages/an age (esp. BrE) a very long timeVERB + AGES/AN AGE▪ spend, take▪It took an age for us all to get on the boat.
PHRASES▪ absolutely ages▪I've been sitting here for absolutely ages.
▪ ages ago▪Carlos left ages ago.
▪ for ages▪{{Roman}}II.{{/Roman}}We had to wait for ages!
verbADVERB▪ a lot, really▪The shock has aged her a lot.
▪My mother has really aged since she got sick.
▪ a little▪He had put on weight and aged a little.
▪ quickly, rapidly▪a rapidly ageing/aging population
▪ prematurely▪ gracefully, well▪This wine has not aged well.
Collocations dictionary. 2013.
