Meaning & use
codger
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Meanings
nouncountableinformalhumorous
An old man, usually seen as odd or stubborn, mentioned fondly or teasingly.
Grammar: Often preceded by old: an old codger.
Patterns
- an old codger
The old codger next door still waters his tomatoes at dawn.
A cheerful codger ran the village shop.
My grandfather is a grumpy old codger but a kind one.
nouncountableinformal
Any older person, especially a man, set in his ways.
Grammar: Used mostly for men.
Patterns
- a grumpy codger
The retired codgers argued about the football every morning.
He turned into a crusty codger after retirement.
A pair of codgers sat in the café doing the crossword.
Word forms
| plural | codgers |
|---|
Common combinations
- old codger
- The old codger refused to use a mobile phone.
- grumpy codger
- He was a grumpy codger with a soft heart.
- crusty codger
- A crusty codger ran the boatyard.
- cantankerous codger
- The cantankerous codger complained about the music.
Synonyms and how they differ
- geezer
- Geezer is British slang and can be rougher or more mocking than codger.
- curmudgeon
- Curmudgeon stresses a bad-tempered attitude, which codger does not require.
- fogey
- Fogey emphasizes old-fashioned views, not just age.
- old-timer
- Old-timer is friendlier and stresses long experience.
Opposites
Word family
- codgerly adjective
- typical of a codger
- codgerhood noun
- humorous word for being an old codger
- old codger noun
- the usual phrase
Commonly confused: codger or cadger?
codger vs cadger
A cadger is someone who begs or borrows without paying back, which differs from an old man.
Practice
The ____ on the porch grumbled that nobody made decent coffee anymore.
Choose one answer.
Codger is an informal word for an old, set-in-his-ways man, which fits the complaint. The other nouns refer to young people.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “codger”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.