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fiftysomething

fiftysomething

4.6
A person between fifty and fifty-nine years old
  • noun
  • /ˈfɪftiˌsʌmθɪŋ/
translation icon : persona de cincuenta y tantos
  • Many fiftysomethings are embracing a healthier lifestyle to stay active.

Examples

  • To oversimplify, the Globe's thirty-to-fortysomething cohort seems more admiring of Baron than the forty-to-fiftysomething crew.

    Blog text (5)
  • She joined a club for fiftysomethings to meet new friends and share experiences.

  • The seminar discussed issues relevant to fiftysomethings, including retirement and health care.

Synonyms

middle-aged
vsfiftysomething
133 2.6

A person who is about 45 to 65 years old

is specific to the ten year span from ages 50 to 59
of a certain age
vsfiftysomething
14 7.2

A polite way to talk about someone who is not young, often middle-aged

is a neutral exact term for people aged 50 to 59
fifties
vsfiftysomething
13 2.0

The years when a person is between 50 and 59

is used to describe a person or thing in that age range
fiftyish
vsfiftysomething
1 3.3

About fifty years old

is used for people across the ten years between ages 50 and 59
mid-fifties
vsfiftysomething
1 3.0

An age between about 53 and 57 years

is applied to a person who falls within that period

How Old

fiftysomething
4.6

Surface Forms

Morphology

fiftysomething = fifty + something (transparent) = fifty + something

A clear compound of the numeral 'fifty' and 'something' meaning an unspecified age in the fifties; the derivation is straightforward for learners.

Etymology

Fiftysomething comes from putting fifty and something together, where something means 'some unknown number' and is used in phrases like twenty-something or thirtysomething. So fiftysomething means 'in your fifties', or between 50 and 59.