auld
/oʊld/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.94 in modern English
5
Scrabble Score
4
Letters
1
Syllables
4
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
Old.
Example Sentences
- "To prepare for the burning bowl, each person writes on slips of paper those negative traits or situations they would like to be rid of in the year to come. Examples might be, […] “Proclivity for attracting Messrs. Wrong”—anything that needs to go in the auld acquaintance category and be never brought to mind."
Etymology
From Scots auld or from Northern Middle English auld, aulde, awld, awlde, ald, alde, from Northumbrian Old English ald, variant of Old English eald (“old, mature, venerable; antique, ancient, primeval”), from Proto-West Germanic *ald, from Proto-Germanic *aldaz (“grown up; old”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eltós (“grown, nourished, matured”). Compare cognate Latin altus (“nourished, raised, grown; tall”). Doublet of old.
Origin
- Source language: Old English
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /oʊld/
- British English: /əʊld/
Inflected Forms
Phrases
Frequently Paired Words
alderman
auld birkie
aulden
auldfarrand
auld-fashioned
auld lang syne
auld-warld
auld wives' tongues