PC Terms for Aging

Photo by gb_packards

Because I spent 30 years in the field of composition and rhetoric before starting a graduate degree in gerontology, I am hyper-aware of the terms people use to describe older adults. 

For several weeks during the fall of 2010, I recorded all the terms that crossed my path in conversation, paper, and hypertext. The good, the bad and the ugly are listed below. 

Generally, the preferred term is older adult. 

Terms that connote station and vitality such as "elder statesman" and "mature" are strongly preferred over terms that connote weakness and emotional instability such as "elderly" or "dotage."

Again: In order to analyze how people are using language, my list is DESCRIPTIVE rather than PRESCRIPTIVE. Many of these terms are either dated or offensive.

Advanced	Advanced  years	Aged
Aging	Biddy	Codger
Crone	Curmudgeon	Declining
Dotage	Doyenne	Duffer
Elder	Elderly	Elder statesman
Frail	Geezer	Geriatric
Golden ager	Golden years	Grandmother/-ma
Grandfather/-pa	Graying	Gray-haired
Hoary	In a decline	Mature
Maturing	Octogenarian	Old / Old people
Old Fart	Older / Older adult	Old fogey
Old lady / man	Older generation	Patriarch/matriarch
Retired/retiree	Retirement age(d)	Sage
Senescence / senescent	Senior	Senior citizen
Top generation	Vulnerable population	Venerable
Veteran	Winter of life	Wise / wizened

I invite you to ask yourself some of the same questions I asked about these terms: 

Q1:  Who uses terms to describe people who are 65+?  More specifically, who uses these terms frequently and/or professionally?

Q2: In what venues are these terms used? In other words, where are these terms spoken and written—especially with high frequency?

Q3: What terms are pejorative? Which are neutral? Which are preferred by various professional groups?

Q4: Are some terms becoming dated? In other words, are they more frequent in texts produced in earlier decades?

Q5: What terms do people over 65 prefer others use to describe them as individuals or in groups?

Of course, sometimes older adults use pejorative terms to describe themselves, but that's their prerogative! 

For example, I was standing in line getting my vanity plate (that has "crone" in it), and the man next to me was picking up his, which had "geezer" in it.  We had a good laugh.  You have to be an insider to poke fun of someone regarding their demographics.  

So take some care when using language about older adults so that you can communicate respect, dignity and admiration for those who occupy the generation above us. 

For further reading:
Entitled to Respect: a discussion paper on community attitudes to aging

Abstract from a scholarly essay in The Gerontologist on aging terms in the media
Article from the American Psychologist on ageism in language
Usage tips on aging terms from the Mayfield Handbook

Related:
Elderspeak: Babytalk Directed at Older Adults