guests young and old vs. young and old guests

[Fujibei]

[FONT=ＭＳ Ｐゴシック][/FONT]I came across the following sentence in an Americannewspaper.

"Guests young and old ended up loving the fun socks they were given at theparty."

Does it make any difference if they say "young and old guests"instead of "guests young and old?"
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[MikeNewYork]

No, not really. But I prefer the original.

 

[Raymott]

Yes, it makes a difference. This use of "young and old" is an idiom meaning "everyone, every age".
But if only "young and old guests" liked the socks, maybe the middle-aged guests didn't - since this doesn't carry the wider idiomatic meaning.

 

[5jj]

It's not 'old and new' that's the idiom in my opinion; it's noun, adjective and antonym' as in "Inside the exhibition hall, there is a trade show of Cerdedo tastes, old and new", one of several examples I found here.

 

[Raymott]

It's not 'old and new' that's the idiom in my opinion;

Alright, it's "guests, young and old" that is the idiom. The reason I didn't state it that way was that "guests" is not an integral part, ie. it's "<nouns>, [both] young and old" that is the idiom. I suppose you agree that "Young and old <nouns>" doesn't measure up.

 

[5jj]

I agree that "Young and old <nouns>" doesn't measure up.