doting

American  

[doh-ting] / ˈdoʊ tɪŋ /

adjective

1. excessively fond.

   doting parents.

2. showing a decline of mental faculties, especially associated with old age; weak-minded; senile.

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Other Word Forms

• dotingly adverb
• dotingness noun
• undoting adjective

Etymology

Origin of doting

First recorded in 1480–90; dote + -ing ²

Explanation

Someone who's doting is loving and fond, and tends to spoil you terribly. Your doting grandmother, for example, might shower you with gifts even when it's not your birthday. If someone you know adores you beyond all reason, only seeing your good points and completely disregarding your faults, they're doting. Your doting uncle might offer to fly you to Disney World for spring break, and your doting older sister might wake up early to make your favorite breakfast when you visit her. The earliest meaning of dote was "be feeble-minded from old age," and by the 15th century it came to mean "be loving or infatuated."

Example Sentences

He didn’t even mention Artemis in his most recent State of the Union speech, instead doting on the U.S.

From Salon • Apr. 7, 2026

We’re a long way from Norman Rockwell’s Saturday Evening Post portraits of doting parents taking their rosy-cheeked children to the avuncular family doctor for back-to-school checkups.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 23, 2026

Deciphering whether Kim Jong Un is merely a doting father or a long-term planner is what has drawn intense debate.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 13, 2026

Marantos, who was born on March 13, 1955, grew up in Riverside and remembered her parents doting on their 3,000-square-foot lawn.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 9, 2026

Olivia, from her place in the attic, does her soliloquy about how Julie uses the doting Chet and what Julie really thinks of him.

From "It All Comes Down to This" by Karen English

Related Words

• adoring
• affectionate
• loving