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” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #174) as an adjective. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#174
frequency rank, English
1,431
“O” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Of an object, concept, relationship, etc., having existed for a relatively long period of time.

Corpus desk

Index EN-old · old · English

old · rank #174 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-CORE #174
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,431
  • PHOTO-FINISH little

Nearest frequency peer: little (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Frequency neighbourhood for “old”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “old” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

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.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for old is neighbouring look-alikes ("on", "or", …), not just typos; it is anadjective pronounced /ˈəʊld/. Frequency #174 among 1,431 “O” headwords. 17 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

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.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how old appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. an old abandoned building
  2. an old friend

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "old", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

own#178use#153end#196big#200

What to do next

You've looked up "old". Here's where to go from here.

  • "old" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "on". View pair
  • Usage frequency rank #174 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "O" letter cohort. O–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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