IDIOMS: AGE
You say you're over the hill,
• act your age!
o This expression is used to tell
someone to stop being silly or childish
and behave in a more mature way.
"Come on boys! Stop being so silly
and act your age!"
• age before beauty
o 'Age before beauty' is a teasing,
playful (and slightly rude) way of
indicating to someone that they
should go first.
"As he held the door open Charlie said
“Go ahead please. Age before beauty,
you know!”
• get on in years
o Someone who is getting on in years is
growing old.
"My grandmother is getting on in
years. She's no longer able to look
after her home without help."
• knee-high to a grasshopper
o This term refers to a very young and
therefore small child.
"Last time I saw you, you were knee-
high to a grasshopper!"
• long in the tooth
o A person who is long in the tooth is a
bit too old to do something.
"She's a bit long in the tooth for a
cabaret dancer, isn't she?"
• mutton dressed as lamb
o This expression refers to a middle-
aged woman who tries to look
younger by dressing in clothes
designed for younger people.
"The style doesn't suit her - it has
a mutton-dressed-as-lamb effect on
her"
• no spring chicken
o To say that someone is no spring
chicken means that they are quite old
or well past their youth.
"How old is the owner? I don't know
but she's no spring chicken!"
• (be) over the hill
o If a person is over the hill, they have
reached an age when they can no
longer perform as well as before.
"Gran!
but you're a super cook!"
• (live to a) ripe old age
o This expression means to live until
you are very old.
"If you lead a healthy life you'll live to
a ripe old age." said the doctor."
• rob the cradle
o If you rob the cradle, you have a
romantic relationship with someone
who is much younger than yourself.
"My uncle Ted is dating a twenty-
year-old girl. That's really robbing the
cradle!"
• senior moment
o A momentary lapse of memory,
especially in older people, or an
absent-minded action such as putting
the cereals in the refrigerator, is
humorously referred to as having a
senior moment.
"I found the phone in the cupboard. I
must have had a senior moment!"
• silver surfer
o A silver surfer is an elderly person
who uses the internet.
"After just a few questions my
grandmother was ready to join
the silver surfers."
• put years on someone
o If an event or difficult situation puts
years on someone, it makes them look
or feel much older.
"I hardly recognized Mr. Brown. His
illness has put years on him."