▪ I. elder, n.1
(ˈɛldə(r))
Forms: α. ellærn, ellæn, ellen, 2–4 ellarne, 4 ellerne, elrene, (5 elerne, elorne, ellern, elnerene 5, 9 dial. ellen), 4–7 eller, 4–6 eldre, 5 eldyr, (6 ellore), 6–7 eldren, eldern, 5 eller; β. 5 helren, hilder (-tre), hyldyr, hyllor, hillar, hillerne (-tre), hyl (-tre).
[With OE. ellærn (of which ellen is app. a reduced form, as {iacu}sen of {iacu}sern) cf. MLG. ellern, elderne, alhorn, elhorn (Schiller & Lübben), Flem. elhoren, alhoren (Kilian). Possibly an originally adjectival formation; cf. Ger. ahorn maple = L. acernus adj. (For the euphonic change of elr- to eldr- cf. alder1.) The forms with initial h seem to belong to a wholly different word, prob. of ON. origin; cf. Da. hyld, hyldetræ, Sw. hyll, app. related to the synonymous OHG. holuntar, MHG. holander, holder, mod.G. holunder, holder; in which a connexion of some kind with hole, hollow, is plausible, as the tree might naturally have been named from its tubular stems.]
1. A low tree or shrub, Sambucus nigra (family Caprifoliaceæ), called, for distinction, the Common or Black-berried Elder; bearing umbel-like corymbs of white flowers; the young branches are remarkable for their abundance of pith.
| a 700 Epinal Gloss. 893 Sambucus, ellaen. a 800 Corpus Gloss. 1175 Sambucus, ellaern. c 1000 Sax. Leechd. II. 68 Wiþ fotece ᵹenim ellenes leaf. c 1150 Voc. in Wr.-Wülcker 556 Sambucus, suew, ellarne. c 1325 Gloss. W. de Biblesw. in Wright Voc. 163 De suhen (hildertre, helren) font les souheaus. 1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. i. 66 Iudas he Iapede with þe Iewes seluer And on an Ellerne treo [v.r. eldir; 1377 B. i. 68 eller] hongede him after. c 1425 in Voc. Wr.-Wülcker 646 Hec sambuca, hyllortre. c 1440 Promp. Parv., Eldyr or hyldyr, or hillerne tre [v.r. hillar; hyltre, or elerne; elder, or hyltre, or elorne]. a 1450 Alphita 161 Sambucus..ellen. 1471 Ripley Comp. Alch. v. xlii. in Ashm. (1652) 158 Wene they..to have..of an Elder an Apple swete? 1523 Fitzherb. Husb. §126 The stakes of the..ellore be good. 1598 Shakes. Merry W. ii. iii. 30 My heart of Elder. 1608 Plat Gard. Eden (1653) 100 Every plant of an Eldern will grow. 1615 W. Lawson Orch. & Gard. (1648) 3 Some thinke the..eller [would have] a waterish marish. 1728 Thomson Spring 443 Then seek the bank where flowering elders crowd. 1876 Harley Mat. Med. 576 The Elder, indigenous in Europe, was known to the Greeks. |
2. Extended to other species of the genus Sambucus; in N. America applied chiefly to S. canadensis. With distinguishing epithets: dwarf elder, ground elder, dog elder (S. Ebulus) = Danewort; wild elder, used by Lyte for S. racemosa.
| 1578 Lyte Dodoens iii. xliv. 379 The nature and vertues of the wilde Eldren are as yet unknowen. |
b. In popular names of other plants bearing a superficial resemblance to the elder: bishop's elder, dog elder, dwarf elder, ground elder, wild elder (cf. 2), names for Goutweed (ægopodium Podagraria); ground elder, Angelica silvestris; marsh or marish elder, water elder, white elder = guelder rose (Viburnum Opulus).
3. attrib., as elder-blossom, elder-branch, elder-bud, elder-bush, elder-flower, elder-pith, elder-stick, elder-tree, elder-vinegar, elder-wine, elder-wood; elder-leaved, adj.; elder-blow, elder-blossom; elder-gun, a pop-gun made of a hollow shoot of elder; elder-moth, Uropteryx Sambucata. Also elder-berry, etc.
| 1862 Barnes Rhymes Dorset Dial. I. 76 A vield..Where *elder-blossoms be a-spread. |
| 1875 Emerson Lett. & Soc. Aims, Poet. & Imag. Wks. (Bohn) III. 154 The scent of an *elder-blow..is event enough for him. |
| 1579 Spenser Shep. Cal. Nov. 147 The Muses..Now bringen bitter *Eldre braunches seare. |
| 1642 Fuller Holy & Prof. St. i. v. 12 In the beginning of the spring..sallads are made of *eldern-buds. |
| 1815 Scott Guy M. i, A hut, or farmhouse..surrounded by large *elder-bushes. |
| 1626 Bacon Sylva §692 Of this kind are *Elder-flowers, which therefore are proper for the Stone. 1718 Quincy Compl. Disp. 133 Elder-flowers..Flowers from May to July. |
| 1599 Shakes. Hen. V, iv. i. 210 That's a perilous shot out of an *Elder Gunne. a 1613 Overbury A Wife (1638) 201 As boyes doe Pellets in Elderne Guns. |
| 1882 Garden 23 Sept. 273/1 The *Elder-leaved or black Ash..the leaves of which..are serrated. |
| c 1600 J. Day Begg. Bednall Gr. iv. ii, Thou wither'd *Elder-pith. |
| 1532 More Confut. Tindale Wks. 425/1 No more then..thys greke woorde presbyteros signifyeth an *elder sticke. |
| 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xvii. cxliv. (1495) 700 The *Ellern tree hath vertue Duretica. 1566 Warde tr. Alexis' Secr. iii. i. 11 b, Foure vnces of the water of Elderne tree. 1712 tr. Pomet's Hist. Drugs I. 32 The Arabian Costus is the Root of a Shrub very like an Elder Tree. |
| 1709 Steele Tatler No. 150 ¶6 They had dissented..about the Preference of *Elder to Wine-Vinegar. |
| 1735 Berkeley Querist §151 Men of nice palates have been imposed on, by *elder wine for French claret. |
| 1760 T. Hutchinson Hist. Col. Mass. v. (1765) 464 A young stick of *elder wood. |
¶ 4. Misused for alder1.
| c 1535 G. Du Wes Introd. Fr. in Palsgr. 914 Thelder, aulne. 1611 Florio Alno negro, the blacke Elder-tree. |
▪ II. ˈelder, n.2 dial.
[cf. MDu. elder of same meaning; perh. repr. OTeut. *aliþro(m, f. *alan to nourish. (Not etymologically connected with udder.)]
The udder of a cow or mare.
| 1674 Ray N.C. Wds. 17 The Elder: the Udder. 1679 Plot Staffordsh. (1686) 262 Which was a yard and an inch high at 2 days old, and had..milk in its elder. 1797 J. Downing Disord. Horned Cattle 87 The beast should be..milked quite clean out of the elder. 1875 Lanc. Gloss. s.v. (E.D.S.) Hur [the cow's] elder's a bit sore. 1880 G. F. Jackson Shropsh. Gloss. s.v. (E.D.S.) The mar'..wuz glad to see the cowt for 'er elder wuz as 'ard as a stwun. |
▪ III. elder, a. and n.3
(ˈɛldə(r))
Forms: 1 (Mercian, Kent.) eldra, (Northumbrian, Mercian) ǣldra, (WSax.) ieldra, yldra, 2–3 eldere, eldre, ealdre, 3 eældre, ældre, elldre, eldore, ælder, 3–4 (heldre), uldre, ildre, 4 eilder, eldir, 5 elther, yelder, eelder, (Sc. 6 eldar, 8 ellar), 3– elder. See also alder, older, adjs.
[OE. ęldra (fem. and neut. ęldre) = OS. aldira, OFris. alder, elder, OHG. altiro, eltiro (mod.Ger. älter), ON. eldre, ellre (Da. ældre), Goth. alþiza:—OTeut. *ˈalþizon-, regularly f. *alđo-, OE. ald (WS. eald), old.
The late WS. form yldra survived in the south as uldre (ü), ildre until the 13th c.]
A. adj. The comparative degree of old a.; formerly equivalent to the mod. older, but now restricted to certain special uses.
1. That has lived or existed longer; senior, more advanced in age. † a. Formerly used (both of persons and things) as a predicate; also as an attribute followed by than. Now superseded by older.
| c 1000 Riddles xli. 42 (Gr.) Ic eom micle yldra, þonne ymbhwyrft þes. c 1175 Lamb. Hom. 23 A þet ic beo ealdre. c 1200 Moral Ode (Egerton MS.) 1 Ic æm elder þænne ic wæs, a winter and a lore. a 1240 Wohunge in Cott. Hom. 277 Swa þu eldere wex, swa þu pourere was. 1541 Elyot Image Gov. 93 If she shall be as olde, or elder than I am. 1593 Bilson Govt. Christ's Ch. 364 The lawes of forren countries are farre elder then ours. 1596 Shakes. Merch. V. iv. i. 251 How much more elder art thou then thy lookes? a 1639 W. Whately Prototypes ii. xxxiv. (1640) 161 Friendship is like wine, the elder the better. 1673 Cave Prim. Chr. i. vii. 203 A custom probably not much elder than his time. |
b. as attribute without than. Not now used of things, except with quasi-personification. Now chiefly with ns. denoting family relationship, or as denoting the senior of two indicated persons; otherwise somewhat arch. Often with omission of n. implied in the context.
| Beowulf 469 (Gr.) Wæs hereᵹar dead min yldra mæᵹ. c 888 K. ælfred Boeth. viii, Ic ðe ᵹeongne ᵹelærde swelce snytro swylce maneᵹum oþrum ieldran ᵹewittum oftoᵹen is. c 975 Durh. Gosp. Luke xv. 25 Wæs ða sunu his ældra on lond. 1279 R. Glouc. (1724) 367 Margarete..Þe eldore of þe tuo, in spoushod he nome. a 1300 Cursor M. 3861 Þe eilder sister he for-sok. 1382 Wyclif Luke xv. 25 Forsothe his eldere sone was in the feeld. c 1450 Merlin i. 5 The elther suster vndirstode hym wele. c 1478 Plumpton Corr. 38 The said Wil. Rycroft yelder. 1717 Lady M. W. Montague Lett. II. xliv. 22 It is a great part of the work of the elder slaves to take care of these young girls. 1745 Wesley Wks. (1872) VIII. 217 These are too young; send elder men. 1815 Scott Ld. of Isles vi. xvi, Elder brother's care And elder brother's love were there. 1876 Freeman Norm. Conq. (1876) IV. xvii. 47 The Cathedral Church of the bishoprick whose throne is now hidden in the elder minster of Saint Fritheswyth. |
c. elder statesman, in Japan, a member of the Genro; transf., a person of ripe years and experience whose counsel is therefore sought and valued.
| 1921 Contemp. Rev. July 8 Prince Yamagata..continues the most influential member of the Genro, or Elder Statesmen. 1923 19th Cent. Jan. 138 The exclusive powers of the genro, or elder statesmen, are passing with the men themselves. 1932 Fortune Sept. 100 This choice was exercised by the last of the genro, or ‘Elder Statesmen’, Prince Saionji, aged eighty-three. 1934 Webster, Elder statesmen. a In Japan, an informal body (genro)... b Any similar class of persons. 1935 G. Greene Bear fell Free, One should have made some prescient elder-statesman pronouncement. 1937 John o' London's 15 Jan. 667 (heading) Balfour, the Elder Statesman. 1955 H. Spring These Lovers fled Away ii. 61 When you are twelve, a boy of fifteen..seems almost an elder statesman. 1958 Observer 19 Oct. 22/4 Professor Tawney is the elder statesman of English economic history. 1959 T. S. Eliot Elder Statesman ii. 56 The difference between being an elder statesman And posing successfully as an elder statesman Is practically negligible. |
† 2. a. Of an obligation, right, or title: Of longer standing, prior, that has superior validity. b. Of officials, etc.: That ranks before others by virtue of longer service; senior. Obs.
(Elder Brethren: see brother 4 b.)
| 1642 tr. Perkins' Prof. Bk. iv. §285 If the possession bee not devested out of them by an elder title. 1594 West Symbol. ii. Chancerie §139 It cannot be intended that..he would have left the elder bond..unsued for. 1721–1800 Bailey, Elder Battalion, that Battalion which was first raised, and has the post of honour according to its standing. Elder Officers, such officers whose Commissions bear the eldest Date. |
† 3. elder man: = elder n., in senses B. 2, 3. Sometimes written as one word elderman. Obs.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 5784 (Cotton MS.) Ga gedir samen þin eldir men. 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) I. 41 Þe senatoures and elder men of Rome. c 1400 Apol. Loll. 2 Jerom, & Gregor take a wey þe name of þe bischop, or heldarman. 1530 Compend. Treat. (1863) 51 The prophet Moses hadde chosen seuenty eldermen. 1708 Motteux Rabelais iv. xxv, So they call'd their eldest Elderman. |
4. In Card-playing. elder hand: the first player. Cf. eldest 5.
| 1589 Pappe w. Hatchet C iiij, The poore Church should play at vnequal game, for it should loose al by the Elder hand. 1746 Hoyle Whist (ed. 6) 22 You are elder Hand. 1873 Cavendish [H. Jones] Piquet 29 The pack is then cut by the non-dealer, or elder hand. |
† 5. Of or pertaining to a more advanced period of life; later. Obs.
(In this sense elder days are the opposite of the elder days of sense 6, just as an older portrait has a younger face.)
| 1593 Shakes. Rich. II, ii. iii. 43, I tender you my seruice raw and young; Which elder dayes shall ripen. 1611 ― Cymb. v. i. 14 To second illes with illes, each elder worse. 1737 Whiston Josephus' Ant. xvi. xi. 8 He also was guilty of..a crime in his elder age. |
6. a. That existed at a previous time; ancient, earlier, former. b. Of or pertaining to ancient times or to an earlier period.
| c 1340 Cursor M. App. i. p. 1636. 23876 We..in eldern men vr mirur se. c 1449 Pecock Repr. ii. x. 202 In eeldir daies, whanne processioun was mad. 1587 Mirr. Mag., Induction xii. 7 What thinges were done, in elder times of olde. 1668 Hale Pref. Rolle's Abridgm. 8 Many of the Elder Year-Books are Filled with Law, now not so much in use. 1801 Southey Thalaba ix. ix, Huge as the giant race of elder times. 1823 Lamb Elia Ser. ii. i. (1865) 242 Curiosity prevailing over elder devotion. 1852 C. M. Yonge Cameos I. Introd. 2 The elder England has been so fully written of. 1867 Macfarren Harmony ii. 35 Modern writers..may produce compositions in the elder style. |
7. Comb. as elder-born adj.; elder-brotherhood, the state or dignity of an elder brother; elder-brotherly, -sisterly a., pertaining or proper to an elder brother or sister.
| 1870 Bryant Iliad II. xv. 81 *Elder-born am I. |
| 1884 in Littell's Living Age No. 2077. 66 Its *elder-brotherhood Writ on the face of its perfected plan. |
| 1823 Bentham Not Paul 370 note, This..assumed fatherly affection, under the name of *elder-brotherly..what was it? |
| 1870 M. Bridgman R. Lynne II. viii. 163 ‘So I told them’, said Fanny, with a demure, *elder-sisterly air. |
B. n. An elder person, lit. and fig.
† 1. a. A parent [cf. mod.G. eltern pl.]; an ancestor, forefather; hence, in wider sense, a predecessor, one who lived in former days. Almost exclusively in pl. Obs.
| 971 Blickl. Hom. 195 Ure yldran swultan and swiþe oft us from wendan. a 1000 Elene 462 (Gr.) Þa me yldra min ageaf andsware. a 1067 Chart. Eadweard in Cod. Dipl. IV. 167 For mines fader and for allra minra yldrena sawlan. c 1175 Lamb. Hom. 123 Helle..we weren in bifolen þurh ure eldra gult. c 1205 Lay. 7290 Þet me mine ældre [1275 eldre] dude scome. c 1230 Hali Meid. 27 Feire children..gladien muchel þe ealdren. 1297 R. Glouc. (1724) 11 Here elderne..were y nome in ostage Fram the bataile of Troie. c 1325 Metr. Hom. 109 Underlout till thaim was he, Als god child au til elderes be. 1393 Langl. P. Pl. C. iv. 419 Þat agag of amalek · and al hus lyge puple Sholde deye delfulliche · for dedes of here eldren. c 1440 York Myst. xxvii. 14 That with oure elthers euer has bene. 1513 Douglas æneis vii. iv. 44 And sett himselfe amyde his elderis trone. 1535 Coverdale John ix. 18 They called the elders of him that had receaued his sight. 1557 N. T. (Genev.) 2 Tim. i. 3, I thanke God, whome I serue from myne elders with pure conscience. |
† b. transf. (see quot.) Obs.
| 1719 London & Wise Compl. Gard. vi. 115 Some [branches] shoot directly out of the main Body..and may be called Elders, or Mothers. |
2. a. (A person's) superior in age, senior. Almost exclusively in pl.
| c 1000 Ormin 13215 He þatt iss þin elldre. c 1340 Cursor M. 12092 To his eldre worship drawe. c 1420 Pallad. on Husb. i. 125 That yonger men obeye unto thaire eldron. 1552 Abp. Hamilton Catech. (1884) 36 Ic haif had..understanding aboue my eldaris. 1596 Shakes. Tam. Shr. ii. 7 So well I know my duty to my elders. 1737 Pope Hor. Epist. ii. i. 117 If our elders break all reason's laws. 1801 Med. Jrnl. V. 411, I..leave my elders to judge of them. 1848 Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. 47 The child..undoubtingly listens to..his elders. 1864 Tennyson En. Ard. 375. |
b. A person advanced in life.
| 1597 Shakes. 2 Hen. IV, ii. iv. 281 The wither'd Elder hath his Poll claw'd like a Parrot. a 1643 G. Sandys (J.) From their seats the reverend elders rose. 1884 Illust. Lond. News 20 Sept. 268/12 The three elders, his companions in this terrible adventure, are now brought home. |
3. A member of a ‘senate’, governing body or class, consisting of men venerable for age, or conventionally supposed to be so. Now chiefly Hist.
Orig. as transl. of the seniores of the Vulgate, rendering the Heb. z'qēnīm (lit. ‘old men’). Cf. the equivalent Gr. γέροντες.
| 1382 Wyclif Deut. xix. 12 The aldren [MS. C. elderes; 1388 eldere men] of that citee shulen seende. 1535 Coverdale Susanna 50 The elders (that is the principall heades) sayde. ― 1 Macc. xi. 31 The lettre which we dyd wryte vnto oure elder Lasthenus. 1607 Shakes. Cor. i. i. 230 See our best Elders. 1611 Bible Ruth iv. 9 Boaz saide vnto the Elders, and vnto all the people. 1715–20 Pope Iliad xviii. 586 The reverend elders nodded o'er the case. 1815 Elphinstone Acc. Caubul (1842) I. 221 To which the chief and elders always lend their weight. 1870 Gladstone Prim. Homer (1878) 116 They bear the general appellation of gerontes, elders, as well as kings. |
4. a. In ecclesiastical use. A literal rendering of Gr. πρεσβύτερος, the title given to a certain order or class of office-bearers in the early Christian Church. The Gr. word was adopted in ecclesiastical Latin as presbyter, and its historical representative in Eng. is priest. In certain Protestant churches, chiefly those called Presbyterian, the Eng. word elder (with presbyter as an occasional synonym) is used as the designation of a class of officers intended to correspond in function to the ‘elders’ of the apostolic church.
In the Presbyterian churches the term elders includes the clergy (for distinction called ‘teaching elders’), but in ordinary language it is restricted to the lay or ruling elders, who are chosen in each parish or congregation to act with the minister in the management of church affairs.
| [1382 Wyclif Acts xv. 6 And apostlis and eldre men camen to gidere.] 1526 Tindale Titus i. 5 That thou..shuldest ordeyne elders [Wyclif, preestis] in every citie. 1579 Tomson Calvin's Serm. Tim. 237/2 Seing y⊇ Church is compared to a flocke..the word shepeherde signifieth an Elder, not by age, but by office. 1651 Hobbes Leviath. iii. xlii. 289 Timothy was an Elder. 1719 D'Urfey Pills (1872) II. 288 When their Bishops are pulled down, Our Elders shall be sainted. 1760 T. Hutchinson Hist. Col. Mass. iv. (1765) 426 Most of the churches..had one or more ruling elder. 1794 Burns, Robin shure in hairst, Robin..Play'd me sic a trick, And me the eller's dochter. 1846 M{supc}Culloch Acc. Brit. Empire (1854) II. 285 The Kirk Session is..composed of the minister of the parish and of lay-elders. New elders are chosen by the Session. 1858 Longfellow M. Standish 31 The excellent Elder of Plymouth. |
b. An order of priests in the Catholic Apostolic Church.
| 1828 E. Irving Sermons I. p. xxiii, These Sermons on the Incarnation..you received with all acceptation; and the Elders whom God hath set over you made choice of them to stand first in these volumes. 1876 Encycl. Brit. V. 238/1 Four-and-twenty priests, divided into the four ministries of ‘elders, prophets, evangelists, and pastors’... The understanding is that each elder, with his co-presbyters and deacons, shall have charge of 500 adult communicants in his district. |
c. A minister of any denomination. U.S. local.
| 1792 in Mass. Hist. Soc. Coll. II. 30 In the year 1673 settlers..employed one Elder Jones as their preacher. 1851 Advent Rev. & Sabbath Herald 21 July 3/3 Elder Jesse Thompson and his companion [wife], (at whose table we are now writing,) were of this number. 1874 B. F. Taylor World on Wheels i. xix. 140 Take a young fellow from Hamilton or Rochester..and call him Elder, as his country brethren and sisters always will. 1921 R. M. Jones Later Periods Quakerism I. iv. 120 Even now in the rural districts of New England a minister of any denomination is called ‘Elder’. 1925 Z. A. Tilghman Dugout 7, I can remember some of the elder's sermon that day. |
d. Quakerism. An officer of the Society of Friends appointed by a monthly meeting and responsible for the organization and proper conduct of meetings held within the jurisdiction of the monthly meeting.
| 1703 Yearly Meeting Epistle (Friends House) 1 We..tenderly Recommend unto Faithful Friends, and Elders especially, to Watch over the Flock of Christ. 1789 Yearly Meeting Minutes (Friends House) XVIII. 527 This Committee is of the Judgment that the offices of Elder & Overseer are distinct. a 1847 in W. & T. Evans Friends' Library XI. 425/2 This Epistle [of 31 Mar. 1672] seems to be specially addressed to Ministers, and those filling the responsible station of overseers of the flock; the duties subsequently assigned to Elders, probably devolved at this time, on the faithful, perhaps in both the stations above mentioned, but..especially on overseers. 1917 E. Grubb What is Quakerism? v. 99 The principal offices in the Society of Friends are those of Overseer and Elder. These officers are appointed, triennially, by the Monthly Meetings... The main work of the Elders is to foster more directly the spiritual life of the congregations, specially in regard to the vocal ministry. 1921, etc. [see overseer n. 1 e]. 1974 G. Hubbard Quaker by Convincement iv. iii. 209 The whole concept of Elders and Overseers is that the functions of spiritual and material caring which would elsewhere devolve on a professional pastor should be carried by lay members. 1983 Milligan & Thomas My Ancestors were Quakers 14 The word ‘elder’ appears in Quaker documents from commonwealth days..here it means a seasoned Friend... The specific appointment by monthly meetings of elders ‘to counsel ministers’ belongs to the first half of the 18th century. |
5. Comb., as elder-like adv.
| 1640 Witt's Recreat. in Southey Comm.-Pl. Bk. Ser. ii. 314 Now most Elder-like he can Behave himself. 1795 Southey Joan of Arc iii. 542 Fathers of the church..what! elder-like Would ye this fairer than Susannah eye? |
▪ IV. ˈelder, v.
[f. prec.]
1. trans. to elder it: to play the elder (brother or sister). nonce-wd.
| 1855 Chamb. Jrnl. III. 243 She elders it with such tender protection over the little sister. |
2. intr. To become older, to begin to show age. So ˈeldering ppl. a. poet. and colloq.
| 1876 G. M. Hopkins Wr. Deutschland (1918) st. 18 Never-eldering revel and river of youth. 1885 S. W. Mitchell In War Time xii. 186 Before she went away she was what my nurse used to call ‘eldering’. 1949 O. Nash Versus 121 In my eldering age. |
Add: 3. trans. Of an elder in the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers): to admonish (a Friend, esp. for inappropriate behaviour).
| [1912: see *eldering vbl. n. below.] 1967 A. S. Byatt Game xi. 158 He apparently brought them to Meeting, and then stood up and talked for forty-five minutes... If he'd been anyone else, he'd have been eldered after fifteen minutes. 1978 Church Times 6 Jan. 8/2 At a recent Quaker meeting we were all told not to clap, and not long ago an acquaintance of mine was mildly ‘eldered’ in a friendly way for sitting with his legs crossed. 1987 A. Heron Gifts & Ministries 8 The use of the expressions ‘eldering’ and ‘to elder’..sometimes diverts attention from the principally positive aspects of eldership. |
eldering ppl. a.: also (in sense *3) vbl. n.
| 1912 Friends' Q. Examiner XLVI. 322 The following notes are interesting as illustrating some forms of eldering prevalent in those early days. 1955 M. H. Jones Rufus M. Jones ii. 18 A Friend took him aside..and told him, ‘Thou shouldst not have been thinking.’ The young visitor took this in good grace..but it might have wrecked his ministry, for such an eldering in such a place was a serious matter. 1986 Friends' Q. XXIV. 165 The Earlham School of Religion and the Quaker Hill Conference Center..have sponsored a series of annual Consultations on..: eldering, discernment,..accountability. |
▪ V. elder
dial. form of helder, rather.
| 1857 E. Waugh Lanc. Sk. 26 in Lanc. Gloss. (E.D.S.) One could elther manage we't at th' for-end o' their days. 1874 Manch. Critic 21 Feb. ibid., I'd elder see 'em wortchin for th' next to nought nor see 'em doin nought. |