The spelling of the word "donegan" may be confusing because it doesn't match its pronunciation. In phonetic transcription, "donegan" is written as /ˈdʌnɪɡən/. The "o" in the spelling is actually pronounced as a short "u" sound, as in "sun". The "e" in the spelling is silent, and the "a" is pronounced as a short "i" sound, as in "pin". Additionally, the stress in the word is on the first syllable, "dun", rather than the second syllable, "gan".