dotage C2 Topic:Health & Medicine US /ˈdoʊtɪdʒ/ UK /ˈdəʊtɪdʒ/ See IPA manual Freq #72099 Meanings 1 noun a period or state of old age marked by declining mental ability or judgment Even in his dotage, the scholar could recall long passages of poetry. 2 noun archaic: excessive fondness or foolish infatuation His dotage on the young courtier blinded him to obvious misconduct. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · a period or state of old... senilitymental declinesecond childhood 2 noun · archaic: excessive fondness... infatuationfondness ↔ Opposites lucidityacuity Word family Related forms dotedotardsenescent Etymology From Middle English dotage, formed from dote + -age. The verb dote meant both 'to be mentally weak from age' and 'to be foolishly fond,' which produced the noun's two historical senses. Topics Health & Medicine External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # dotage **Type:** Word **Level:** C2 **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /ˈdoʊtɪdʒ/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈdəʊtɪdʒ/ **Frequency rank:** 72099 ## Meanings 1. a period or state of old age marked by declining mental ability or judgment 2. archaic: excessive fondness or foolish infatuation ## Examples - Even in his dotage, the scholar could recall long passages of poetry. - His dotage on the young courtier blinded him to obvious misconduct. ## Synonyms - senility - mental decline - infatuation ## Antonyms - lucidity - acuity ## Related Forms - dote - dotard - senescent ## Etymology From Middle English dotage, formed from dote + -age. The verb dote meant both 'to be mentally weak from age' and 'to be foolishly fond,' which produced the noun's two historical senses. ## Topics - Health & Medicine markdown