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senior

Syllabification: (sen·ior)
Pronunciation: /ˈsēnyər/

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Definition of senior

adjective

  • 1of a more advanced age:he is 20 years senior to Leonard
  • of or for students in the final year of college or high school.
  • relating to or denoting competitors of above a certain age or of the highest status in a particular sport.
  • British of, for, or denoting schoolchildren above a certain age, typically eleven.
  • (often Senior) [postpositive] (in names) denoting the elder of two who have the same name in a family, especially a father as distinct from his son:Henry James senior
  • 2holding a high and authoritative position:he is a senior Finance Ministry official
  • [predic.] (senior to) holding a higher position than:the people senior to me in my department

noun

  • a person who is a specified number of years older than someone else:she was only two years his senior
  • an elderly person, especially one who is retired and living on a pension.
  • a student in the final year of college or high school.
  • British a student in a school for older children, especially those eleven and over.
  • a competitor of above a certain age or of the highest status in a particular sport:at fourteen you move up to the seniors

Origin:

late Middle English: from Latin, literally 'older, older man', comparative of senex, sen- 'old man, old'

senior in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of senior in the British & World English dictionary