Definition

1. Verb (Transitive):

   • To retire or pension (an employee) because of reaching a certain age or because of physical inability to continue working.
   • To declare something (e.g., a system, method, or object) obsolete or out of date.

2. Verb (Intransitive):

   • To become retired or ineligible for work due to old age or infirmity.
   • To become obsolete or antiquated.

Usage and Examples

• Transitive Verb (retire a person):

  • The company policy is to superannuate employees at age 65.
  • He was superannuated after his long illness made it impossible for him to perform his duties.

• Transitive Verb (declare obsolete):

  • The new software update will superannuate the previous version.
  • The invention of the smartphone superannuated many standalone devices like MP3 players.

• Intransitive Verb (become retired):

  • After forty years of service, she will superannuate next month.
  • Many workers in that industry superannuate early due to the physically demanding nature of the job.

• Intransitive Verb (become obsolete):

  • Traditional film cameras have largely superannuated in the digital age.
  • That manufacturing technique is superannuating rapidly.

Advanced Usage and Notes

• The term is formal and is most commonly used in official, corporate, or institutional contexts, especially regarding retirement policies.
• When referring to objects or ideas, it implies a formal or decisive replacement by something newer and more effective, not just gradual fading from use.

Variants and Related Words

• Superannuated (Adjective): Retired because of age or infirmity; obsolete or out-of-date.

  • The office still uses a superannuated computer system.
  • A superannuated professor emeritus.

• Superannuation (Noun): The process of superannuating; a pension or retirement fund.

  • He receives a monthly payment from his superannuation.

Synonyms

• Retire (for a person).
• Pension off (for a person).
• Obsolesce (for a thing, though rare as a verb).
• Outdate (for a thing).
• Decommission (for equipment or systems).

Antonyms

• Employ (for a person).
• Hire (for a person).
• Modernize (for a thing).
• Update (for a thing).

Related Phrases and Concepts

• To be put out to pasture: An informal idiom meaning to be retired, often implying being made to stop work due to age.

  • After the merger, several senior managers were put out to pasture.

• To be phased out: A common phrase for something becoming obsolete and gradually discontinued.

  • The old model is being phased out in favor of the new one.

Verb

1. retire or become ineligible because of old age or infirmity
2. become obsolete
3. declare to be obsolete
4. retire and pension (someone) because of age or physical inability