“老”本是形容词。《说文解字》:“老,考也,七十曰老。”实际上“老”并非一定指七十岁的年纪不可,凡以“老”称呼年长者均有实义而不应视为词缀。只有当“老”字用如和年老、年长没有直接关系的意义时,它纔开始虚化。“老”缀是由形容词“老”虚化而来,这一点语言学界没有异议。但也正因此,它往往带着脱胎前的痕迹,有时很难与实词“老”区分开来。南北朝 “Old ” This is an adjective. “Explain Word”: “Old test also seventy said.” “In fact ” old “does not necessarily mean the age of 70 can not, where the” old “ Realistic and should not be regarded as affixes. Only when the ”old“ is used in the same meaning as it is not directly related to old age and old age does it begin to faint. ”Old “ suffix from the adjective ”old “ from the virtual language, which no objection. But also because of this, it often carries the traces of pre-birth, and sometimes difficult to distinguish from the real word ”old ". Northern and Southern Dynasties