What are some nice words to describe a very old age of a person

Question

I wonder what some nice words are to describe a very old age of a person?

I guess directly using the word "(very) old" may be interpreted as being impolite, such as following:

Are you saying your grandma still has grandparents? They must be very
  old.

So I am looking for an alternative but nice way to show my surprise on the age.

Mitch · Accepted Answer

One can use locutions that are oblique, seeming not to directly state the case, like:

advanced in years

Also, there are words for people who have attained a particular decade:

octogenarian
nonagenarian

and for over a hundred

centenarian

Waggers · Answer

You might say they are long in the tooth which is a slightly nicer way of saying "old".

Alternatively you could talk about long life as a more positive way of referring to old age (although I'm struggling to think of a good example of doing this), or do away with talk about age altogether and say something like "How amazing to have five generations of your family together at the same time!"

Jez · Answer

Describing someone as "aged" or "elderly" is a relatively neutral way of indicating age, and one description which may even ring positive would be to describe them as being of a "ripe old age".

Barrie England · Answer

It depends on the age. No normal person over, say, 80 can be offended by being called old.

Tom Au · Answer

The "technical" word I would use is "geriatric."

Another word I would use is "senescent."

Olaf4 · Answer

would "venerable" work in this context?

user39933 · Answer

The person can be called seasoned or advanced in years.

What are some nice words to describe a very old age of a person

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