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age; prior in age; elder; hence, more advanced in dignity, rank, or office; superior; as, senior member; senior counsel.

The quality or state of being senior.

To exercise authority; to rule; to lord it. [R.] Fairfax.

Seniority. [Obs.] Shak.

The latter part of life; an advanced period of life; seniority; state of being old. Nor wrong mine age with this indignity. Shak.

A senior or superior; a person of rank or dignity. [Obs.]

A senior; an elder; a predecessor. [Obs.] Junius and Andronicus . . . in Christianity . . . were his ancients. Hooker.

Seniority. [Obs.]

One of the senior and governing members of an Inn of Court.

In American colleges and universities, a day of the commencement season on which the senior class celebrates the completion of its course by exercises conducted by the members, such as the reading of the class histories and poem, the delivery of the class oration, the planting of the class ivy, etc.…

An officer who ranks next above a captain; sometimes, by courtesy, the senior captain of a squadron. The rank of commodore corresponds with that of brigadier general in the army.

Alone by a senior officer present during evolutions or drills, when it commands "Silence."

The chief or senior of a company on occasion of ceremony; as, the dean of the diplomatic corps; -- so called by courtesy. Cardinal dean, the senior cardinal bishop of the college of cardinals at Rome. Shipley. -- Dean and chapter, the legal corporation and governing body of a cathedral. It consists of the dean, who is…

Lit., a dean; the senior member of a body or group; as, the doyen of French physicians. "This doyen of newspapers." A. R. Colquhoun.

Born before another; prior in years; senior; earlier; older; as, his elder brother died in infancy; -- opposed to Ant: younger, and now commonly applied to a son, daughter, child, brother, etc. The elder shall serve the younger. Gen. xxv. 23. But ask of elder days, earth's vernal hour. Keble. Elder hand (Card Playing),…

The state of being older; seniority. "Paternity an eldership." Sir W. Raleigh.

ially war vessels; also, the collective naval force of a country, etc. Fleet captain, the senior aid of the admiral of a fleet, when a captain. Ham. Nav. Encyc.

, one in the third year of his course, one in the fourth or final year being designated a senior; in some seminaries, one in the first year, in others, one in the second year, of a three years' course.

t Cambridge, the superintendant of examinations for degrees; at Dublin, either the first (senior) or second (junior) in rank in an examination for the degree of Bachelor of Arts.

r the Bath road, and exacting money from all passers-by, to support at the university the senior scholar of the school.