dóthain

Irish

Alternative forms

daochaint, daothain, dóchain, dóchaint, dóithin

Etymology

From Middle Irish doíthin.^[1]

Pronunciation

(Munster) IPA^(key): /ˈd̪ˠoːhənʲ/
(Galway) IPA^(key): /ˈd̪ˠoːnʲ/, /ˈd̪ˠuːnʲ/^[2]
(Ulster) IPA^(key): /ˈd̪ˠɔhənʲ/

Noun

dóthain f or m (genitive singular dóthain or dóthana)

enough, sufficiency
Tá mo dhóthain agam. ― I have enough.

An bhfuil do dhóthain bainne ann? ― Is there enough milk for you?

Usage notes

This noun is generally modified by a possessive determiner indicating the person who the sufficiency is for: mo dhóthain (“enough for me”), do dhóthain (“enough for you”), a dóthain (“enough for her”) etc., even when the “for me” etc. is not expressed in English.

The thing of which there is enough follows in the genitive:

Tá a ndóthain ama acu anois. ― They have enough time now.

In certain idiomatic expressions, this noun can be modified by a number, but this number is not to be taken literally:

Tá a dhá dhóthain le déanamh aige. ― He has his hands full. (literally, “He has his two sufficiencies to do.”)
Tá a seacht ndóthain le rá acu. ― They talk far too much. (literally, “They have their seven sufficiencies to say.”)

Declension

Declension of dóthain

Fourth declension

Bare forms (no plural of this noun)

Case	Singular
Nominative	dóthain
Vocative	a dhóthain
Genitive	dóthain
Dative	dóthain

Forms with the definite article

Case	Singular
Nominative	an dóthain
Genitive	na dóthain
Dative	leis an dóthain don dóthain

Variant declension

Declension of dóthain

Third declension

Bare forms (no plural of this noun)

Case	Singular
Nominative	dóthain
Vocative	a dhóthain
Genitive	dóthana
Dative	dóthain

Forms with the definite article:

Case	Singular
Nominative	an dóthain
Genitive	an dóthana
Dative	leis an dóthain don dóthain

Derived terms

mórdhóthain (“more than enough”)

Mutation

Irish mutation
Radical	Lenition	Eclipsis
dóthain	dhóthain	ndóthain
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

References

^ Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “doíthin”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
^ Finck, F. N. (1899) Die araner mundart (in German), volume II, Marburg: Elwert’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, page 69