How to say 'Old' in Japanese | 老

Wondering how to say 'Old' in Japanese? You're in the right place!

The Japanese word for Old is 'Rou', written as 老 in Japanese.'Old' in hiragana is ろう.

word

老

Meaning

Old

Reading

ろう

rou

Kanji

老Old, Aged

Explanation

The Japanese prefix '老 (ろう)' means 'old' and is used to indicate age or seniority. It is often attached to nouns to describe something or someone as being old or elderly. For example: old man「老人」(ろうじん). old age「老年」(ろうねん). This prefix is commonly used in formal or respectful contexts to refer to elderly people or things that have aged. It carries a nuance of respect and experience, especially when referring to people.

Part Of Speech

prefix

Kanji JLPT

N3

Kanji Grade

4

Frequency

4856

Composition

kanji

Radical Form

耂