老 meaning in English

lǎo

prefix used before the surname of a person or a numeral indicating the order of birth of the children in a family or to indicate affection or familiarity; old (of people)

HSK 1adjectiveadverbprefix6 strokes

Meaning of 老

Definitions from CC-CEDICT.

lǎo

prefix used before the surname of a person or a numeral indicating the order of birth of the children in a family or to indicate affection or familiarity
old (of people)
venerable (person)
experienced
of long standing
always
all the time
of the past

How to use 老

老 means old for people, but it is also a friendly prefix before a surname, as in 老王 (Lǎo Wáng), and it appears in very common words like 老师 (lǎoshī, teacher). As an adverb, 老 or 老是 (lǎoshì) means always, often with a complaining tone. Example: 他老迟到。(Tā lǎo chídào.) He is always late.

Picture the top of 老 (lǎo) as a person with long hair, and the bottom 匕 as a bent figure leaning forward. Together they suggest someone who has grown old.

Common mistake: Learners often write 考 (kǎo, test) when they mean 老. The tops are the same, but 老 ends in 匕 and 考 ends in a hooked 丂. Also, 老 is used for people, while old objects are usually 旧 (jiù), so say 旧衣服 (jiù yīfu), not 老衣服, for old clothes.

老 in example sentences

Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.

我wǒ们men要yào活huó到dào老lǎo，做zuò到dào老lǎo。

We must work as long as we live.

他tā们men像xiàng老lǎo朋péng友yǒu一yī样yàng交jiāo谈tán。

They talked together like old friends.

我wǒ不bù能néng让ràng他tā当dāng我wǒ的de老lǎo师shī。

I can't have him as my teacher.

所suǒ有yǒu小xiǎo孩hái都dōu听tīng老lǎo师shī的de话huà。

All of the children are listening to the teacher's words.

您nín看kàn起qǐ来lái像xiàng个gè老lǎo实shí人rén。

You seem to be an honest man.

Stroke order for each character

Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.

老 lǎo · prefix used before the surname of a per… · 6 strokes

Related words

Words that share a character with 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
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
老公	lǎogōng	(coll.) husband

Questions about 老

What does 老 mean?

老 (lǎo) means "prefix used before the surname of a person or a numeral indicating the order of birth of the children in a family or to indicate affection or familiarity; old (of people)" and is used as a adjective, adverb and prefix.

How do you write 老?

老 is made of 1 character: 老 (6 strokes). That is 6 strokes in total.

Is 老 an HSK word?

Yes. 老 is on the HSK 1 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.

Is it rude to call someone 老 in Chinese?

Usually not. 老 before a surname, like 老李 (Lǎo Lǐ), shows familiarity and warmth among friends or coworkers. Calling a stranger directly 老 can sound impolite, so use 老人家 (lǎorénjia) or a title when being respectful.

What does 老 mean before a number, like 老二?

It marks birth order among siblings. 老大 (lǎodà) is the oldest child, 老二 (lǎo'èr) is the second, and so on. 老大 can also mean boss in casual speech.