adj

geriatric

jehr-ee-AT-rihk

adj

Relating to elderly people or to the medical care of old age.

"She works in the geriatric ward of the hospital."

"The clinic offers specialised geriatric care for patients over eighty."

noun

An elderly person (informal, and can sound dismissive).

"He joked about becoming a geriatric once he turned fifty."

How to Use Geriatric

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishTo do with old age or the health needs of older people.

When to use it

As a noun for a person, it can sound rude or dismissive — it is normally used as an adjective in medical contexts.

Common pairings

geriatric medicine geriatric ward geriatric patient

more geriatric comparative, geriatrics plural, most geriatric superlative

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Can you complete this real example?

She works in the _____ ward of the hospital.

Built from Ancient Greek gêras ("old age") plus the ending -iatric, seen also in "paediatric."

pediatric psychiatric