OLD MAN

Pronunciation (US):

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does old man mean? 

• OLD MAN (noun)
  The noun OLD MAN has 5 senses:

1. a man who is very old

2. a familiar term of address for a man

3. an informal term for your father

4. aromatic herb of temperate Eurasia and North Africa having a bitter taste used in making the liqueur absinthe

5. (slang) boss

  Familiarity information: OLD MAN used as a noun is common.

 Dictionary entry details 

• OLD MAN (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A man who is very old

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

graybeard; greybeard; Methuselah; old man

Hypernyms ("old man" is a kind of...):

adult male; man (an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman))

golden ager; old person; oldster; senior citizen (an elderly person)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "old man"):

codger; old codger (used affectionately to refer to an eccentric but amusing old man)

antique; gaffer; old-timer; old geezer; oldtimer (an elderly man)

patriarch (a man who is older and higher in rank than yourself)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A familiar term of address for a man

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

old boy; old man

Hypernyms ("old man" is a kind of...):

adult male; man (an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman))

Sense 3

Meaning:

An informal term for your father

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("old man" is a kind of...):

dysphemism (an offensive or disparaging expression that is substituted for an inoffensive one)

begetter; father; male parent (a male parent (also used as a term of address to your father))

Sense 4

Meaning:

Aromatic herb of temperate Eurasia and North Africa having a bitter taste used in making the liqueur absinthe

Classified under:

Nouns denoting plants

Synonyms:

absinthe; Artemisia absinthium; common wormwood; lad's love; old man

Hypernyms ("old man" is a kind of...):

wormwood (any of several low composite herbs of the genera Artemisia or Seriphidium)

Holonyms ("old man" is a member of...):

genus Artemisia (usually aromatic shrubs or herbs of north temperate regions and South Africa and western South America: wormwood; sagebrush; mugwort; tarragon)

Holonyms ("old man" is a substance of...):

absinth; absinthe (strong green liqueur flavored with wormwood and anise)

Sense 5

Meaning:

(slang) boss

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("old man" is a kind of...):

boss; hirer (a person responsible for hiring workers)

Domain region:

America; the States; U.S.; U.S.A.; United States; United States of America; US; USA (North American republic containing 50 states - 48 conterminous states in North America plus Alaska in northwest North America and the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean; achieved independence in 1776)

Domain usage:

argot; cant; jargon; lingo; patois; slang; vernacular (a characteristic language of a particular group (as among thieves))

 Context examples 

But Mr. Weston is almost an old man.

(Emma, by Jane Austen)

Bad, sir, very bad, but an old man has few pleasures.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

“Farewell, then,” said the old man solemnly.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

But if it was not he, it must have been Alec Cunningham himself, for by the time that the old man had descended several servants were upon the scene.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

This was the deed my father did, Kinoos, an old man.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

Arthur held out his hand, and took the old man's warmly.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

Ye should iv seen the old man’s face!

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

Kneel down, my child, and take an old man's blessing.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The old man paused and then continued, ‘If you will unreservedly confide to me the particulars of your tale, I perhaps may be of use in undeceiving them.’

(Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley)

The old man grinned, and showed his teeth, as if he should have been very glad to get into the circle if he could.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)