Etymologically
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senior

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /ˈsiː.ni.ə/, US /ˈsiː.njɚ/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin senior (“older, elder”),[2][3] the comparative of senex (“old”) (genitive senis),[2][3][4] from Proto-Indo-European *sénos (“old”),[3][2] the source also of Old Irish sen, Greek hénos, Lithuanian sẽnas, Armenian hin, Sanskrit sána- and Gothic sineigs “old”, sinista “eldest”.[3][5][4] The noun is from the adjective.[3][2] Latin senior also gave titles of respect in many languages: French sire, Spanish señor, Portuguese senhor and Italian signor.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

“The elder”, added to a personal name to distinguish a father from a son of the same name: 1287–88,[3] the late 13th century, in the Leet rolls of the City of Norwich (“Walterus Baddyng, seniore”).[2]

Semantic evolution

The noun, “a person of authority”, is from the mid-14th century (1363),[2][3] and “a person older than another” from the late 14th century.[2] “Higher in rank, longer in service”, as in a senior officer, is first recorded in 1513.[3][2][6] An advanced student is a senior from 1612,[3] and in American use a student in the fourth year from 1741.[3] In commerce the senior partner of a firm is from 1864.[6] An elderly person is a senior by 1889,[2] and senior citizen, usually one past retirement age, is American from 1938.[2][3][6] Seniority is from the 15th century, from Medieval Latin.[5]

Timeline

  • 1287–88 – the elder, after a name.[3]
  • 1363 – noun, a person of authority.[3]
  • late 14th century – a person older than another.[2]
  • 1513 – higher in rank.[3][6]
  • 1612 – an advanced student.[3]
  • 1741 – a fourth-year student.[3]
  • 1889 – an elderly person.[2]
  • 1938 – senior citizen.[2][3]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Higher in rank or standing, or longer in service.
  2. The elder of two people with the same name, as father and son: John Smith Senior.
  3. For or relating to elderly people.
  4. (US) Of the final year of a high school or college.

Noun

  1. A person who is older than another: five years my senior.
  2. An elderly person; a senior citizen.
  3. A person of higher rank or standing.
  4. (US) A student in the final year of high school or college.

Word family

  • seniority
  • senior chief petty officer
  • senior high school
  • senior lecturer

Usage notes

Senior was also an obsolete spelling of seignior.[6]

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  4. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press