doddering

adjective

dod·​der·​ing ˈdä-d(ə-)riŋ How to pronounce doddering (audio)

Examples of doddering in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The trip was a remarkably gruelling one for any President to make, let alone an eighty-year-old often caricatured by his Republican foes as a doddering octogenarian. Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 20 Oct. 2023 The first season received criticism for portraying middle age as dreary—the protagonists grappled with death, decay, and a doddering cluelessness regarding social change. Inkoo Kang, The New Yorker, 23 Aug. 2023 Attention must be paid to the core audience that has stuck it out and been filling these doddering old venues with their seasoned laughter and empathy. Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 6 June 2023 Whether Arkel is wise or a doddering old fool is a matter of question, which the veteran Italian bass Ferruccio Furlanetto answers with a loud affirmation of the latter. Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2023 Like Ted Lasso, Joe Biden is often underestimated – dismissed by some unkind eyes as doddering, by others as an aging all-star of an outdated Washington game whose bipartisan, backslapping rules are no longer played. John Avlon, CNN, 22 July 2021 Biden is often dazed, doddering, and disoriented. Deroy Murdock, National Review, 8 Oct. 2021 The president has spent months painting Biden as sleepy, doddering and senile, a move that may have lowered the bar for Biden’s performance in the eyes of many voters who will be seeing him on stage in Cleveland for the first time since the Democratic convention. Tyler Pager, Bloomberg.com, 27 Sep. 2020 The president has spent months painting Biden as sleepy, doddering and senile, a move that may have lowered the bar for Biden's performance in the eyes of many voters who will be seeing him on stage in Cleveland for the first time since the Democratic convention. Justin Sink and Tyler Pager Bloomberg News, Star Tribune, 27 Sep. 2020

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'doddering.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1898, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of doddering was in 1898

Dictionary Entries Near doddering

Cite this Entry

“Doddering.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/doddering. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

doddering

adjective
: showing signs of old age

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