dote

C2+ Topic:Actions & Processes

Also spelled doat

US /doʊt/ UK /dəʊt/ See IPA manual

Minimal pairs

Sounds like dot /ɑ/ vs /oʊ/

Meanings

1

verb
to show excessive fondness or affection

Grandparents tend to dote on their first grandchild.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to show excessive fondness... adore cherish idolize worship love pamper

Opposites

neglect ignore disregard despise

Word family

Forms doated

Derived forms dotingdoterdotagedotard

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

doting husband
a husband who is excessively attentive and affectionate

Adjective + noun

Etymology

From Middle English doten ('to be foolish, act silly'), probably from or cognate with Middle Dutch doten ('to be silly'); the sense 'to love excessively' developed from the notion of foolish fondness.

doten Middle English

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Actions & Processes

External links

# dote

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /doʊt/
**IPA (UK):** /dəʊt/

## Meanings
1. to show excessive fondness or affection

## Examples
- Grandparents tend to dote on their first grandchild.

## Synonyms
- adore
- cherish
- idolize
- worship
- love
- pamper

## Antonyms
- neglect
- ignore
- disregard
- despise

## Derived Forms
- doting
- doter
- dotage
- dotard

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: doten

## Etymology
From Middle English doten ('to be foolish, act silly'), probably from or cognate with Middle Dutch doten ('to be silly'); the sense 'to love excessively' developed from the notion of foolish fondness.

## AI Etymology
Dote is from Middle English doten ('to be foolish, act silly'), probably from or cognate with Middle Dutch doten ('to be silly'); the sense 'to love excessively' developed from the notion of foolish fondness. The immediate etymological form is Middle English doten. In present use as a verb, it means "to show excessive fondness or affection", keeping the historical formation close to the word's ordinary semantic work. Derived forms include doting, doter, dotage, and dotard. Its contrast set includes neglect, ignore, disregard, and despise, which clarifies the semantic boundary of the modern word.

## Topics
- Actions & Processes

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