老 (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)
老 (lǎo) is a Chinese character meaning “old (of people).” Classified as HSK Level 1 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 耂 (structural) and 匕 (structural). It ranks #179 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically pictographic, 老 a person bent over with long hair 匕 and a crutch; compare 耂. Its radical form 老 (old) appears in many related characters such as 考 (kǎo, to beat), 者 (zhě, (after a verb or adjective) one who (is) ...).
Definitions
- 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)
Etymology & Origin
pictographicA person bent over with long hair 匕 and a crutch; compare 耂
Decomposition: ⿱耂匕 (layout: top-bottom)
Stroke Order
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Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 老
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 老师noun | lǎo shī | teacher | 1 |
| 老板noun | lǎo bǎn | variant of 老闆|老板 | 5 |
| 老婆noun | lǎo pó | (coll.) wife | 5 |
| 老实adjective | lǎo shi | honest | 6 |
| 老鼠noun | lǎo shǔ | rat | 6 |
| 老公noun | lǎo gōng | (coll.) husband | 5 |
| 老人noun | lǎo rén | old man or woman | 3 |
| 古老adjective | gǔ lǎo | ancient | 5 |
| 老是adverb | lǎo shi | always | 4 |
| 老虎noun | lǎo hǔ | tiger | 4 |
| 老家noun | lǎo jiā | native place | 4 |
| 老太太noun | lǎo tài tai | elderly lady (respectful) | 6 |
| 养老院noun | yǎng lǎo yuàn | nursing home | 6 |
| 衰老adjective | shuāi lǎo | to age | 6 |
| 老年noun | lǎo nián | elderly | 4 |
| 老百姓noun | lǎo bǎi xìng | ordinary people | 5 |
| 养老verb | yǎng lǎo | to provide for the elderly (family members) | 6 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 老兄noun | lǎo xiōng | elder brother (often used self-referentially) |
| 老天noun | lǎo tiān | God |
| 圣诞老人proper-noun | shèng dàn lǎo rén | Father Christmas |
| 老朋友noun | lǎo péng you | old friend |
| 老大adjective | lǎo dà | old age |
| 老头 | lǎo tóu | old fellow |
| 老爹noun | lǎo diē | (dialect) father |
| 老弟noun | lǎo dì | (affectionate form of address for a male who is not very much younger than oneself) my boy |
| 老天爷noun | lǎo tiān yé | God |
| 百老汇proper-noun | bǎi lǎo huì | Broadway (New York City) |
| 老家伙noun | lǎo jiā huo | variant of 老家伙 |
| 老远adjective | lǎo yuǎn | very far away |
| 老二noun | lǎo èr | second-eldest child in a family |
| 老鹰noun | lǎo yīng | (coll.) eagle |
| 老头子 | lǎo tóu zi | (coll.) old man |
老 appears in 124 compound words: 78 as the first character, 19 as the last, and 3 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 老 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (44)
old but still got it; as vigorous and active as before; just as skilled as when one was young
to recover one's youthful vigour; to become young again; to become rejuvenated in one's old age
to respect the wise and venerate the worthy (idiom); to honor the great and the good
old but still got it; as vigorous and active as before; just as skilled as when one was young
to recover one's youthful vigour; to become young again; to become rejuvenated in one's old age
Showing 12 of 44 idioms containing 老.
Example Sentences
老城区保留了很多历史建筑，吸引了许多游客前来参观。
Lǎo chéngqū bǎoliú le hěn duō lìshǐ jiànzhù, xīyǐn le xǔduō yóukè qiánlái cānguān.
The old city district has preserved many historical buildings, attracting many tourists to visit.
年味上墙!静安这幅“邻里新画卷”,让老小区变成了“..
nián wèi shàng qiáng ! jìng ān zhè fú lín lǐ xīn huà juǎn , ràng lǎo xiǎo qū biàn chéng le . .
New Year's flavor on the wall! Jing'an's "new picture of the neighborhood" has turned the old community into a ":
冬奥会|速滑综合:荷兰老将德容四战奥运首夺金
dōng ào huì sù huá zèng gě : hé lán lǎo jiāng dé róng sì zhàn ào yùn shǒu duó jīn
Winter Olympics|Speed skating comprehensive: Dutch veteran De Jong won his first gold medal in four Olympic games
米兰冬奥会女子单人雪车美国老将泰勒夺冠
mǐ lán dōng ào huì nǚ zǐ shàn rén xuě chē měi guó lǎo jiāng tài lè duó guàn
U.S. veteran Taylor wins women's single snowmobile at Milan Winter Olympics
“希望老百姓安宁幸福” 他的新春愿望和冬窝子的雪...
xī wàng lǎo bǎi xìng ān nìng xìng fú tā de xīn chūn yuàn wàng hé dōng wō zǐ de xuě . . .
"I hope the people are peaceful and happy" His New Year's wish and the snow in the winter nest...
老铺黄金2月28日启动2026年首轮调价;...
lǎo pù huáng jīn yuè rì qǐ dòng nián shǒu lún diào jiè . . .
Laopu Gold initiated its first price adjustment of 2026 on February 28;...
你的中文老师是谁？
Nǐ de Zhōngwén lǎoshī shì shéi?
Who is your Chinese teacher?
你跟老板合得来吗？
Nǐ gēn lǎobǎn hédelái ma?
Do you get along with your boss?
我能和老师说话吗？
Wǒ néng hé lǎoshī shuōhuà ma?
Can I speak with the teacher?
老公性无能，我该怎么办？
Lǎogōng xìng wúnéng, wǒ gāi zěnmebàn?
What should I do if my husband is impotent?
Character Family
老 Radical Family — Characters sharing the old radical
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 老 (lǎo) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 老 and 崩?
How many strokes does 老 have?
What is the radical of 老?
What are the components of 老?
What are common words containing 老?
What characters sound the same as 老 (lǎo)?
Is 老 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
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