dodderer

9.7

An old person who walks slowly and unsteadily because they are weak

noun
/ˈdɒdərər/

: anciano

Seeing the dodderer move slowly, she offered to help him cross the road.

Examples

At the park, the dodderer sat on a bench, reminiscing about his younger days.
The dodderer struggled to keep his balance as he walked down the street.
And the three of them, coachman, coach, and horse, project upon the gold of the pavement three old and bluish dodderers who quiver with each slow trot.

Academic text (2007)

Synonyms

limper

vsdodderer

1 7.4

A person who walks with difficulty because of pain or injury

means elderly frail movement rather than a limp from injury

reeler

vsdodderer

1 9.9

A person who walks unsteadily as if about to fall

is used for elderly people who move weakly due to frailty

staggerer

vsdodderer

8.2

A person who walks unsteadily and looks about to fall

describes elderly weak movement rather than many possible causes

hobbler

vsdodderer

8.9

A person who walks with a limp and an unsteady step

shows weak age related unsteady movement rather than a limp only

Antonyms

youth

101 1.0

A young person, often a boy or young man

How Frail

frail

6.5

dodderer

9.7

old person

175 1.0

older adult

11 1.7

Surface Forms

dodderer singular

dodderers plural

Morphology

dodderer = dodder (transparent) = dodder + er

Regular agentive formation: 'dodder' (to move unsteadily) + '-er' yields 'one who dodders', so the meaning is predictable from the base.

Etymology

Dodderer comes from the verb dodder, which means 'to shake' or 'to move in a slow, unsteady way'. So a dodderer is someone who walks with small, shaky steps because they are old or weak.