Meaning of 古老
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- ancient
- old
- age-old
How to use 古老
古老 describes things with a long history, such as cities, buildings, customs, legends, or civilizations. It usually comes before a noun with 的. Example: 这是一座古老的城市。(Zhè shì yí zuò gǔlǎo de chéngshì.) This is an ancient city.
古 (gǔ) means ancient, and 老 (lǎo) means old. Put two words for age together and you get something very, very old, like a city or a tradition that has lasted for centuries.
Common mistake: Learners often use 古老 for people, but it is for things and traditions with a long history. For an old person say 老人 (lǎorén) or 年纪大 (niánjì dà), and for an old phone or old clothes use 旧 (jiù).
古老 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
古 gǔ · ancient · 5 strokes
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老 lǎo · prefix used before the surname of a per… · 6 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 古老.
| 老师 | lǎoshī | teacher |
| 老人 | lǎorén | old man or woman; the elderly |
| 老朋友 | lǎo péngyou | old friend; (slang) period |
| 老是 | lǎoshì | always |
| 老年 | lǎonián | elderly; old age |
| 老王 | Lǎo Wáng | |
| 老板 | lǎobǎn | boss; proprietor |
| 老太太 | lǎotàitai | elderly lady (respectful); esteemed mother |
| 古代 | gǔdài | ancient times |
| 老百姓 | lǎobǎixìng | ordinary people; the "person in the street" |
| 老头儿 | lǎotóur | see 老頭子|老头子[lao3 tou2 zi5] |
| 老婆 | lǎopo | (coll.) wife |
Questions about 古老
What does 古老 mean?
古老 (gǔlǎo) means "ancient; old" and is used as a adjective.
How do you write 古老?
古老 is made of 2 characters: 古 (5 strokes), 老 (6 strokes). That is 11 strokes in total.
Is 古老 an HSK word?
Yes. 古老 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 古老 and 古代?
古老 is an adjective that means something is very old and still exists or is still known, like 古老的传说 (an ancient legend). 古代 (gǔdài) is a noun meaning ancient times as a period, like 在古代 (in ancient times).
Is 古老 positive or negative?
It is usually neutral or positive, suggesting history and value, as in 古老的文化 (an ancient culture). To say something is old-fashioned in a negative way, Chinese speakers more often use 老旧 (lǎojiù) or 过时 (guòshí).