Today’s Spanish word of the day is “edad”.
It’s a feminine noun meaning “age”.
The standard way to refer to how old someone is in Spanish is to literally say that someone has a particular number of years, or has a particular age. This contrasts to English, where we would say that we are a particular age. For example:
- Tengo 45 años de edad. – I am 45 years old. (Literally “I have 45 years of age”).
As well as referring to the age of a person, it the word “edad” can also refer to periods, or “ages” in history, for example:
- La vida en la Edad Media era difícil. – Life in the middle ages was difficult.
The word “edad” comes from Latin aetas, which also meant “age”. The English word “age” comes from the same root, though it entered English via the Old French word edage, which had already changed significantly from its Latin origins.
Example sentences
Mi papá tiene 70 años de edad.
My dad is 70 years old.
¿A qué edad empezaste a aprender a tocar la guitarra?
At what age did you start learning to play the guitar?
La edad de la persona no siempre refleja su nivel de madurez.
A person’s age doesn’t always reflect their level of maturity.
Mi abuela todavía es activa a su edad.
My grandmother is still active at her age.
Aunque a su edad podría haberse jubilado, sigue trabajando con mucho entusiasmo.
Although at his age he could have retired, he continues working with a lot of enthusiasm.
