ENGLISH
REFERENCE

eldest

n. countable
B1 Intermediate US //ˈɛɫdəst// UK //ˈɛldəst// el·dest

n. the person in a family or group who was born first. You use this to talk about the oldest child among siblings.

n. the first-born member of a family or group. Often used as a substantive noun to refer to the person with the greatest age among siblings.


SIMPLE

As the eldest, she often looked after her younger brothers.

CONTEXTUAL

The inheritance was traditionally passed down to the eldest, though modern laws have changed these family customs.

COMPLEX

While the younger children were free to pursue artistic careers, the eldest felt a heavy burden of responsibility to manage the family's struggling farm.

Synonyms
Usage

Usually preceded by the definite article 'the'.

Pitfall

He is the eldest than meHe is older than meEldest is a superlative form used for groups of three or more; it cannot be used in comparative 'than' structures.

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