thirty-something

A form of thirtysomething — A tricenarian: a person in their thirties, a person aged between 30 and 39 years (inclusive).

Similar
thirtiesmid-thirties

Meanings

nounthirty-something (plural thirty-somethings)

plural thirty-somethings

  1. alternativeAlternative form of thirtysomething.

    Twenty- and thirty-somethings will gladly do the work you used to do, and probably for less money.

    2013 January 13, Caitlin Kelly, “Over 50, and Under No Illusions”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 13 Jan 2013
adjectivethirty-something (not comparable)
  1. alternativenot comparableAlternative form of thirtysomething.

    Tripp is only one of several local “failure-to-launch” sons, thirty-something men still living at home.

    2006 March 17, Michael Eidam, “Failure to reach full potential”, in Daily Pilot, Los Angeles, Calif.: Los Angeles Times Communications, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 30 Aug 2025
    2 more examples

    What's different about Skate-N-Fun Zone this morning are the skaters, mostly thirty-something women on skates pushing strollers. Toddlers, not teenagers, circle the rink.

    2004 October 28, Denice A. Jobe, “Let the Good Times Roll”, in The Washington Post, Washington, D.C.: The Washington Post Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 30 Aug 2025

    Thirty-something men with slicked-back hair and bowling shirts, on dates with young women with pearl necklaces, bobs and tattoos.

    2013 January 23, Joshua David Stein, “The Slipper Room”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 24 Jan 2013
numeral
  1. alternativeAlternative form of thirtysomething.

    Thirty-something, she proves, is not too early for a retrospective, which is, after all, just a way of taking stock of where you are.

    2019 April 19, Siobhan Burke, “Review: You’ll Never Dance Alone (a Solo)”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 19 Apr 2019
    2 more examples

    Although I can still lay claim to thirty-something, I saw a glimpse of such a grim future recently when my cat came down with the sniffles.

    1994 December 28, Ann W. O’Neill, “Let Me Get This Straight: I’m the Human, You’re the Cat”, in Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles, Calif.: Los Angeles Times Communications, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 30 Aug 2025

    The nostalgia epicenter is the baby boomers, who grew up as cars came into their own as a mass-market, affordable entity. “Thirty-something is when people start collecting,” said Mr. Checchia, of the Franklin Mint.

    2000 May 17, Cliff Rothman, “In Automobilia, a Yearning for the Days of Youth”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 27 May 2015

Synonyms & antonyms

nounthe time of life between 30 and 40

Similar
thirtiesmid-thirties
Also see

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Cite this entry
APA

thirty-something. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/thirty-something

MLA

“thirty-something.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/thirty-something. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “thirty-something,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/thirty-something.

Source: thirty-something on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.