elder
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5++LDOCE 5++el·der1 /ˈeldə $ -ər/ ●●○ adjective especially British English the elder of two people, especially brothers and sisters, is the one who was born first 〔两人中〕年纪较长的〔尤指哥哥或姐姐〕 OPP youngerelder brother/son/sister/daughter etc His elder son Liam became a lawyer. 他的大儿子利亚姆当了律师。 Sarah is the elder of the two. 两人当中萨拉年纪较长。 ► Don’t say ‘elder than someone’. Say older than someone: She was two years older than me.不要说 ‘elder than someone’. 而要说 older than someone: She was two years older than me. 她比我大两岁。
Examples from the Corpus
elder• John's elder brother died in a boating accident.• But his elder brother John thinks that he knew better what the score was than he ever let on.• His elder brother, Nails, still at school, played water-polo for the town and stole cars.• Bruch suggests that a significantly large proportion of anorexics are eldest or elder daughters.• And the elder Miss Snoot at her window high up in Old Odborough looks over the roofs of the town.• In contrast, Jane Alexander as the elder sister and Robert Klein as her bulky beau are hitched to plows.• Wright's elder sister is also an actor.• Polyneices, the elder son, did the same.elder brother/son/sister/daughter etc• In character he was very different from his dead elder brother.• Also present were Bracy Clark and his elder brother, Henry.• Midge had lost an elder brother, killed by a shell on his nineteenth birthday in the Second World War.• Their elder son, Nicky, had disappeared on his motorcycle in a cloud of dust and anger.• The elder son of the Rev.• It was initially his elder brother, Sir Richard Damory, who was more prominent.• The elder brother was shot in the stomach as he knelt pleading for mercy.• On top of all this was the constant need to defend his religion against a clever elder brother who was an atheist.elder2 ●○○ noun [countable] 1 be somebody’s elder formal to be older than someone else 比某人年长be two/ten etc years somebody’s elder Janet’s sister was eight years her elder. 珍妮特的姐姐比她大八岁。2. somebody’s elders (and betters) OLD/NOT YOUNGpeople who are older than you and who you should respect 某人的长辈[前辈]3 OLD/NOT YOUNGa member of a tribe or other social group who is important and respected because they are old 长者，长辈 a meeting of the village elders 村里长辈们的集会4. RRCsomeone who has an official position of responsibility in some Christian churches 〔基督教某些教会中的〕长老5. elder abuse the crime of harming an old person 虐待老人(罪)6. HBPa small wild tree that has white flowers and black berries 接骨木Examples from the Corpus
elder• The ancestors rarely act on their own initiative: generally these avenging angels of justice are invoked by the local elder.• I myself have watched many elders labour over their paintings and pour spiritual potency into these creations.• Classical music elders may turn up their noses, but so far, the antics are working.• Such elders may have given positive meaning to experiences of anxiety, poverty, chronic illness, multiple losses and death.• At a very early age children learn to self-justify, because they learn it from their elders who are continuously doing it.• It is natural enough for them to want to acquire knowledge from their elders.• the tribal elders• However, as stories so often show, what elders say youth disregards.Origin elder1 Old English ieldra, from eald “old” elder2 1. → ELDER12. Old English ellærnel·der1 adjectiveelder2 nounChineseSyllable
and the brothers sisters, people, of two especially is elder Corpus the
elder
el‧der1 /ˈeldə $ -ər/ 
adjective especially British English
OPP younger
elder brother/son/sister/daughter etc
His elder son Liam became a lawyer.
Sarah is the elder of the two.
► Do not say ‘elder than someone’. Say older than someone: She was two years older than me.
elder2 noun [countable]
Origin: ellærn1. be sb’s elder formal to be older than someone else
be two/ten etc years sb’s elder
Janet’s sister was eight years her elder.
2. sb’s elders (and betters) people who are older than you and who you should respect
3. a member of a tribe or other social group who is important and respected because they are old:
a meeting of the village elders
4. someone who has an official position of responsibility in some Christian churches
5. elder abuse the crime of harming an old person
6. a small wild tree that has white flowers and black BERRIES
| I |
adjective especially British English Language: Old English
Origin: ieldra, from eald 'old'
the elder of two people, especially brothers and sisters, is the one who was born first Origin: ieldra, from eald 'old'
OPP younger
elder brother/son/sister/daughter etc
► Do not say ‘elder than someone’. Say older than someone: She was two years older than me.
| II |
noun [countable] Sense 6
Language: Old EnglishOrigin: ellærn
be two/ten etc years sb’s elder
2. sb’s elders (and betters) people who are older than you and who you should respect
3. a member of a tribe or other social group who is important and respected because they are old:
4. someone who has an official position of responsibility in some Christian churches
5. elder abuse the crime of harming an old person
6. a small wild tree that has white flowers and black BERRIES
old having lived for a long time; no longer young 指年老、年纪大 ：◆ She's getting old—she's 75 next year. 她上年纪了，明年就 75 岁了。 elderly ( used as a polite word for 'old'rather
* old 的委婉语，指年纪较大的、上了年纪的 ：◆ She is very busy caring for two elderly relatives. 她在忙着照顾两个年老的亲戚。 aged ( very old指年迈的、年老的 ：◆ Having aged relatives to stay in your house can be quite stressful. 年迈的亲戚住在家里有时压力相当大。 long-lived having a long life; lasting for a long time 指寿命长的、长寿的、经久耐用的、持久的 ：◆ Everyone in my family is exceptionally long-lived. 我们家每个人都特别长寿。 mature used as a polite or humorous way of saying that sb is no longer young 礼貌或幽默的说法，指某人已成年或不再年轻 ：◆ clothes for the mature woman 成年妇女的服装
Patterns
a(n) old/elderly/aged/long-lived/mature man/woman a(n) old/elderly/aged/mature gentleman/lady/couple
