# senior

Pronunciation: US say "SEEN-yur" /ˈsinjɚ/; UK say "SEEN-yuh" /ˈsiːnjə(r)/

## Adjective

1. Higher in rank, dignity, or office; superior in standing to others.
   - Simple: Higher in rank or position than other people at a job or in a group.
   - _She holds a senior position at the law firm._
   - _Senior officers met privately to discuss the new policy._
4. Having to do with the final year of high school (twelfth grade) or of a university course of study. *(US)*
   - Simple: Belonging to the last year of high school or college.
   - _She gave a short speech at the senior banquet._
   - _The senior class organized a trip to Washington in the spring._
5. Describing a league or competition open only to players beyond a specified age or experience level. *(Canada, US)*
   - Simple: Belonging to a sports league or contest for older or more experienced players.
   - _He qualified for the senior division at the national championship._
   - _Senior players in this league must be over thirty._
6. Greater in age than another; older.
   - Simple: Older in age than another person.
   - _The senior Mr. Holloway, now eighty, handed the farm over to his son._
   - _Although he is ten years senior to his wife, he has far more energy than she does._

## Noun

2. An elderly person, especially one past retirement age, sometimes regarded with respect because of their age. *(US)*
   - Simple: An old person, especially someone who has retired.
   - _Several seniors gathered in the lobby to wait for the shuttle bus._
   - _A senior traveling alone can request help boarding the train._
3. A student in the final year at a high school or university. *(Philippines, US)*
   - Simple: A student in the last year of high school or college.
   - _As a senior, she mentored several younger students through their first term._
   - _The seniors decorated the gym before the homecoming dance._
7. A person who is higher in rank, dignity, or office than another.
   - Simple: A person who has a higher rank or position than you.
   - _She always defers to her seniors during staff meetings._
   - _As his senior, the captain issued the orders for the night watch._
8. A person who is older than another, referred to with a possessive.
   - Simple: A person who is older than someone else.
   - _Although she looked young, she was actually my senior by a decade._
   - _The professor was only a few years our senior when she began teaching._

## Noun

9. In the early Christian Church, one of the elders, also called presbyters, of a congregation. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: An elder or leader in the early Christian church.

## Origin

Latin senex ("old") has the comparative senior ("older"), which Middle English took as senior. Señor, signore, sir, and sire are among its doublets.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/senior (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).