Age /(āj)/

Age

n.
  1. The whole duration of a being, whether animal, vegetable, or other kind; lifetime.
    Mine age is as nothing before thee.
    — Ps. xxxix. 5.
  2. That part of the duration of a being or a thing which is between its beginning and any given time; as, what is the present age of a man, or of the earth?
  3. The latter part of life; an advanced period of life; seniority; state of being old.
    Nor wrong mine age with this indignity.
  4. One of the stages of life; as, the age of infancy, of youth, etc.
  5. Mature age; especially, the time of life at which one attains full personal rights and capacities; as, to come of age; he (or she) is of age.
  6. The time of life at which some particular power or capacity is understood to become vested; as, the age of consent; the age of discretion.
  7. A particular period of time in history, as distinguished from others; as, the golden age, the age of Pericles.
    Truth, in some age or other, will find her witness.
  8. A great period in the history of the Earth.
  9. A century; the period of one hundred years.
    Fleury . . . apologizes for these five ages.
  10. The people who live at a particular period; hence, a generation.
    The way which the age follows.
    Lo! where the stage, the poor, degraded stage, Holds its warped mirror to a gaping age.
    — C. Sprague.
  11. A long time. [Colloq.]
  12. the right belonging to the player to the left of the dealer to pass the first round in betting, and then to come in last or stay out; also, the player holding this position; the eldest hand. (poker)

Phrases & Compounds
Age of a tide
the time from the origin of a tide in the South Pacific Ocean to its arrival at a given place.
Moon's age
the time that has elapsed since the last preceding conjunction of the sun and moon.

Age

v. i.

imp. & p. p. Aged; p. pr. & vb. n. Aging

  1. To grow aged; to become old; to show marks of age; as, he grew fat as he aged.
    They live one hundred and thirty years, and never age for all that.
    I am aging; that is, I have a whitish, or rather a light-colored, hair here and there.

Age

v. t.
  1. To cause to grow old; to impart the characteristics of age to; as, grief ages us.