老
lǎo
old
Part of speech · adjective
Pattern visualization
no decomposition available
Examples
- 老人需要帮助。Elders need help.
- 这是个老朋友。This is an old friend.
Collocations
老人老朋友老师
Mnemonic
老 lǎo "old / longtime / honorific prefix" — three senses: 1) elderly (老人), 2) longtime (老朋友), 3) respectful prefix (老师 teacher, 老板 boss). Cognate of Japanese 老 oi. Antonym for "young": 年轻 niánqīng.
Quick check
Meaning of 老板?