Ageing or Aging? The Atlantic Decides
Aging is the process of growing older. British English keeps the e in ageing, American English drops it, and both are correct at home.
Aging is the process of growing older, or of maturing something deliberately. The spelling splits neatly: American English writes *aging*, British English writes *ageing*, keeping the e that normally disappears before *-ing*. British writers keep it because *aging* without the e looks as though it should rhyme with *raging*.
- Growing older. *An aging population.*
- Deliberate maturing. *Aging whisky in oak.*
- Ageing — the British spelling. *Ageing infrastructure.*
- Ageless — not showing age. *An ageless design.*
- Ageism — discrimination by age. *Ageism in hiring.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | age | Old age. |
| Verb | age | It ages well. |
| Present participle (US) | aging | Aging equipment. |
| Present participle (UK) | ageing | An ageing fleet. |
| Adjective | ageless | Ageless style. |
- The report examines an aging workforce.American spelling.
- An ageing bridge needs constant repair.British spelling.
- The cheese is aged for two years.Deliberate maturing.
The silent e before -ing
- Usually dropped — hope becomes hoping, write becomes writing
- Kept after soft c or g before a or o — noticeable, manageable
- Ageing — British writers keep it to protect the soft g
- Dyeing and dying — the e distinguishes two different verbs
- Singeing and singing — the same trick again
From *age*, Old French *aage*, from Latin *aetas*. The two spellings of the participle diverged in the nineteenth century with the standardisation of American usage.
Is ageing or aging correct?
Both. Ageing is standard British, aging standard American. Be consistent within one document.
Why does dyeing keep its e?
To distinguish it from dying. Without the e the two verbs would be identical in writing.