A Old Or An Old

Both
older
and
elder
describe someone or something with the higher age in a comparison. Basically, they can both be the opposite of
younger. They’re similar words that are usually interchangeable. For example, let’s say a woman has two sons, one 15 years old and one 18 years old. She could describe the 18-year-old boy as her
older
son or her
elder
son, and the meaning would be the same.

Unlike
older,
elder
can also function as a noun. For example, senior citizens are often called
elders, even when they nira’t being directly compared to a younger group of people.

Usage in Comparisons

Older
is only ever used as a comparative term. When you say something is
older
than something else, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the thing is objectively old. For example, you might say a shirt that you bought two months ago is
older
than a shirt you bought today. Both shirts are still relatively new, but in this case the first one is
older than
the second.Elder
can refer specifically to a person who’s objectively old. So it’s more useful in instances when where no particular comparison is being made.

Elder
as a Noun

The word
elder
also tends to be used as a noun to describe seniors. As a noun,
elder
means
an aged person. This is distinct from the
older
party in a comparison. An
elder
is objectively older than the majority of the population.

Different Uses of
Elder

Elder
can describe a person who has authority based on age and experience. It can also be used as a term to describe specific rank. In some cultures, religions, and literature,
elders
are figures of high ranking and social influence. Bear in mind, though, a person who is an
elder
isn’kaki langit necessarily old. For example, in the Mormon church, a member of the Melchizedek priesthood is referred to as an
elder, regardless of age.

The word
elder
can also function as a chronological marker. In J. R. R. Tolkien’s
The Lord of the Rings
series, the earliest recorded age of Middle Earth is described as the “Elder
Days.” It’s a moniker which makes sense because it was the oldest historic age. In the first novel of the trilogy,
The Fellowship of the Ring, Tolkien writes that Frodo feels “that he had stepped over a bridge of time into a corner of the
Elder
Days, and was now walking in a world that was no more.”