fifty-two-year-old
UK[ˈfɪfti tuː jɪər əʊld]US[ˈfɪfti tuː jɪr oʊld]
adj
Being fifty-two years of age.
n
A person who is fifty-two years old.
Morpheme Breakdown
fifty
two
year
old
fifty
two
year
old
Etymology
The compound "fifty-two-year-old" is a modern English construction built entirely from native Germanic elements. Its logic is transparently arithmetic and descriptive: it combines the cardinal numbers "fifty" and "two," derived from Old English terms for counting, with the noun "year," denoting the unit of time, and the adjective "old," indicating age. The hyphenated structure acts as a single grammatical unit, either as a compound adjective ("a fifty-two-year-old tradition") or a compound noun ("a sprightly fifty-two-year-old"). This pattern exemplifies English's analytical tendency to create precise, modular descriptors for age by sequentially linking number, unit, and state, a formula applicable to any numerical age.
Analysis
Structure: fifty + two + year + old
- fifty: From Old English fīftig, a compound of fīf (five) and -tig (group of ten). A cardinal number.
- two: From Old English twā, the feminine and neuter form of twēgen (two). A cardinal number.
- year: From Old English ġēar, meaning a cycle of seasons, a period of time. A noun.
- old: From Old English eald, meaning aged, ancient. An adjective.
Examples
She is a fifty-two-year-old architect with decades of experience.
The fifty-two-year-old bridge was finally scheduled for renovation.
He became the youngest fifty-two-year-old to complete the marathon, setting a new record for his age group.