Comparing "jiu" and "lao"

Both 旧 (jiù) and 老 (lǎo) mean "old," but 旧 (jiù) refers more to a worn-out, beat-up appearance of an object, whereas 老 (lǎo) refers to actual age in existence and can refer to people.

B1HSK3ASV4567

	旧 (jiù)	老 (lǎo)
Meaning	worn out	aged, experienced; "the usual," existing for a long time
Part of Speech	adjective	adjective
Formality	formal and informal	formal and informal

:Yes

For "worn out" use 旧 (jiù)

Use this to refer to objects that have been in use for a long time and thus are worn out or beat up.

Common Phrases

These phrases work with 旧 (jiù)：

• 旧 衣服jiù yīfuold clothing
• 旧 电视jiù diànshìold TV
• 旧 电脑jiù diànnǎoold computer
• 旧 手机jiù shǒujīold cell phone
• 旧 家具jiù jiājùold furniture
• 旧 自行车jiù zìxíngchēold bicycle

Example Sentences

In the following sentences, ONLY 旧（jiù）can be used:

• 你的 衣服 太 旧 了 ， 买 新 的 吧 。 Nǐ de yīfu tài jiù le, mǎi xīn de ba.Your clothes are too old, buy new ones.
• 这 是 旧 鞋子， 不 是 新 鞋子 。 Zhè shì jiù xiézi , bù shì xīn xiézi.These are old shoes, not new shoes.
• 他 有 一 辆 旧 自行车。 Tā yǒu yī liàng jiù zìxíngchē .He has an old bicycle.

For "aged" or "existing for a long time" use 老 (lǎo)

While 老 (lǎo) can mean "aged," it often imparts a certain degree of respect, traditionally. It can also be difficult to determine exactly when 老 (lǎo) is a separate word and when it is a part of a word.

Common Phrases

These phrases work ONLY with 老 (lǎo)：

• 老人lǎorénold person
• 老 树lǎo shùold tree
• 老 房子 lǎo fángziold house
• 老 故事lǎo gùshìold story
• 老 朋友lǎo péngyǒu old friend

Example Sentences

In the following sentences, ONLY 老 (lǎo) can be used:

• 这个 人 很 老 了，感觉 他 90 岁 了。 Zhège rén hěn lǎo le, gǎnjué tā 90 suì le.This man is very old, it feels like he's 90 years old.
• 我 在 这里 有 很 多 老 朋友。 Wǒ zài zhèlǐ yǒu hěn duō lǎo péngyou .I have a lot of old friends here.
• 这 部 电影 是 一 部 老 电影 。 Zhè bù diànyǐng shì yī bù lǎo diànyǐng .This movie is an old movie.

Some nouns work with both 老 (lǎo) and 旧 (jiù)

In these cases, both words are correct, but they mean something different. 老 emphasizes old style (an old model), whereas 旧 means worn-out or beat-up as usual.

• 我 有 两 个 手机，一 个 新 手机，一 个 是 妈妈 送给 我 的 老 手机。 Wǒ yǒu liǎng gè shǒujī, yī gè xīn shǒujī, yī gè shì māma sònggěi wǒ de lǎo shǒujī .I have two cell phones: a new one and an old one that my mom gave me.
• 我 的 手机 很 旧 了，非常 难用 ，我 需要 买 一 个 新 的 。 Wǒ de shǒujī hěn jiù le, fēicháng nán yòng, wǒ xūyào mǎi yī gè xīn de.My phone is very old and hard to use, so I need to buy a new one.

• 你 不 需要 用 Photoshop 的话 ， 可以 用 老 电脑 lǎo diànnǎo Old computer
• 我 爷爷 只有 一 台 旧 电脑， 也 不 会 用 。 jiù diànnǎo Old computer

• 我 家 的 老 房子 有 两百 年 的 历史 了 。 Wǒ jiā de lǎo fángzi yǒu liǎngbǎinián de lìshǐ le.My family's old house is two hundred years old.
• 这个 房子 虽然 是 去年 建 的 ，但是 看起来 太 旧 了。 Zhège fángzi suīrán shì qùnián jiàn de, dànshì kànqǐlái tài jiù le.This house was built last year, but it looks so old.

• 老 火车站 lǎo huǒchēzhàn Old train station
• 旧 火车站 jiù huǒchēzhàn Old train station

For "the usual" or "same as always" use 老 (lǎo)

Common Phrases

These phrases work ONLY with 老 (lǎo)：

• 老样子lǎo yàngzisame old (situation)
• 老地方 lǎo dìfangthe usual place
• 老时间 lǎo shíjiān the same time

Example Sentences

In the following sentences, ONLY 老 (lǎo) can be used:

• 明天 我们 老时间 在 老地方 见 吧。 Míngtiān wǒmen lǎo shíjiān zài lǎo dìfang jiàn ba. See you tomorrow at the usual time at the usual place.
• 我 最近的 工作 还是 老样子。 Wǒ zuìjìn de gōngzuò háishì lǎo yàngzi .I've been doing the same old thing at work lately.