old

/ˈəʊld/

//ˈəʊld// adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"old" is a 3-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“old” is in the everyday core of English, ranked #174 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#174
frequency rank, English
3
letters
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Of an object, concept, relationship, etc., having existed for a relatively long period of time.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

old vs on
33% similar
old vs or
33% similar
old vs op
33% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for old
PropertyValue
Headwordold
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈəʊld/
Letters3
Frequency rank#174
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “old” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). old lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for old is 3 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈəʊld/. Corpus data places it at rank #174 in overall English word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 17 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for old, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "on", "or", "op", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: Inherited from Middle English old, oold, from Old English ald, eald (“old, aged, ancient, antique, primeval”), from Proto-West Germanic *ald, from Proto-Germanic *aldaz (“grown-up”), originally a participle form, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eltós (“grown, t… The correct English form is old, spelled O-L-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    Of an object, concept, relationship, etc., having existed for a relatively long period of time.
  2. 2
    Of an object, concept, relationship, etc., having existed for a relatively long period of time.
  3. 3
    Of an object, concept, relationship, etc., having existed for a relatively long period of time.
  4. 4
    Of an object, concept, relationship, etc., having existed for a relatively long period of time.
  5. 5
    Having been used and thus no longer new or unused.
  6. 6
    Having existed or lived for the specified time.
  7. 7
    Of an earlier time.
  8. 8
    Of an earlier time.
  9. 9
    Of an earlier time.
  10. 10
    Of an earlier time.
  11. 11
    Of an earlier time.
  12. 12
    Tiresome after prolonged repetition.
  13. 13
    Said of subdued colors, particularly reds, pinks and oranges, as if they had faded over time.
  14. 14
    A grammatical intensifier, often used in describing something positive, and combined with another adjective.
  15. 15
    Indicating affection and familiarity.
  16. 16
    Designed for a mature audience; unsuitable for children below a certain age.
  17. 17
    Excessive, abundant.

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English old, oold, from Old English ald, eald (“old, aged, ancient, antique, primeval”), from Proto-West Germanic *ald, from Proto-Germanic *aldaz (“grown-up”), originally a participle form, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eltós (“grown, tall, big”). Cognates Cognate with Scots aald, auld (“old”), Yola yola, yolaw, yold, yole (“old”), North Frisian ool, ual, uuil, uul, üülj (“old”), Saterland Frisian oold (“old”), West Frisian âld (“old”), Alemannic German altu, oalt, oalts, olt, àltà (“old”), Bavarian oid (“old”), Central Franconian alt, aod, auw, oot (“old”), Cimbrian, German alt (“old”), Dutch oud, oudt (“old”), German Low German old, oolt (“old”), Luxembourgish al (“old”), Mòcheno òlt (“old”), Vilamovian aołd (“old”), Yiddish אַלט (alt, “old”), Danish ældre (“elderly”), Faroese eldri (“elder, older”), Icelandic aldinn (“old”), Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk eldre (“elderly”), Swedish äldre (“elderly”), Crimean Gothic alt (“old”), Gothic 𐌰𐌻𐌸𐌴𐌹𐍃 (alþeis, “old”), Latin altus (“high, tall, grown big, lofty”). Related to eld.

Synonyms

ancientlong in the toothpaleo-agedageingagingelderlyon in yearsagedof ageerstwhileex-formerone-timepastantiquatedobsoleteoutdatedobsoleteage-oldantediluvianauldcobwebbedcobwebbydecrepiteldelderngamolgrayhoarymoss-grownoldold as the hillsold as the Pyramidsoldenolder than dirtolder than the hillsolder than the Pyramidsvenerablewintry

Antonyms

brand newfreshnewneo-ceno-youngcurrentlatestnewnew-fanglednubile

This word in other languages

antiguo(Español)vieux(Français)alt(Deutsch)velho(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "old"?
"old" is spelled O-L-D. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈəʊld/.
What does "old" mean?
As an adjective, "old" means: Of an object, concept, relationship, etc., having existed for a relatively long period of time.
What words are commonly confused with "old"?
"old" is commonly confused with "on", "or", "op". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "old"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "old" is /ˈəʊld/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "old"?
Inherited from Middle English old, oold, from Old English ald, eald (“old, aged, ancient, antique, primeval”), from Proto-West Germanic *ald, from Proto-Germanic *aldaz (“grown-up”), originally a participle form, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eltós ... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “old”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is O-L-D - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈəʊld/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “on” - see the side-by-side comparison. old vs on
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list