Meanings
alternative age-fright · alternative agefright
- rareuncountableThe fear of getting older.
I don't know if this is incurable stage fright, or age fright!
2024, Emily A. Rollie, Milestones in Staging Contemporary Genders and Sexualities4 more examples
Suggest a sermon or presentation on an appropriate topic such as "Accept Your Age,” or “Overcoming Age Fright."
1988, Dorothea Marvin Nyberg, Life Support, page 137In terms of onstage creative work, I'm working on an autobiographical piece called Age Fright, which parallels age fright and stage fright and is part of my larger research project looking at ageing, intimacy and fear.
2013, Caoimhe McAvinchey (editor), Performance and Community: Commentary and Case StudiesHe looked at the mirror - the sight made him grin, It could not be clearer...age-fright was no sin.
2014, James Clark, Gone Secular & Other Poems, page 35I developed Getting On, a back stage tour, a workshop guide for dealing with elders on issues of ‘agefright’ created in collaboration with Leslie Hill and Helen Paris at Stanford University.
2019, Lois Weaver, English and DramaSynonyms: gerascophobia, gerontophobia
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe fear of getting older.
Origin
From age + fright, modelled after stage fright.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
age fright. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/age%20fright
“age fright.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/age%20fright. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “age fright,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/age%20fright.
Source: age fright on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.