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- DictionaryDead ring·er/ˈded ˈriNGər/
noun
- 1. a person or thing that seems exactly like someone or something else: "he is a dead ringer for his late papa"
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So, what is the origin of ‘dead ringer’. Let’s answer in two parts – why dead and why ringer? A ringer is a horse substituted for another of similar appearance in order to defraud the bookies. This word originated in the US horse-racing fraternity at the end of the 19th century.
May 22, 2014 · In any event, to prevent deaths by burial, a string would supposedly be attached to the finger of the person presumed dead, and it was attached to a bell on the other end above ground. When the person moved, the bell would ring. And that was what you would call a “dead ringer.”
Mar 8, 2024 · The meaning of DEAD RINGER is someone who looks exactly like someone else. How to use dead ringer in a sentence.
Dead ringer is an idiom in English. It means "an exact duplicate" or "100% duplicate", and derives from 19th-century horse-racing slang for a horse presented "under a false name and pedigree"; "ringer" was a late nineteenth-century term for a duplicate, usually with implications of dishonesty, and "dead" in this case means "precise", as in ...
"Dead ringer" originates from 19th-century horse racing, where a "ringer" was a high-quality horse substituted for a similar-looking lower-quality one in order to defraud the bookies. The word "ringer" comes from the verb "to ring," which means to create a copy for fraudulent purposes.
DEAD RINGER definition: 1. someone or something that looks very similar to someone or something else: 2. someone or…. Learn more.
Dead ringer definition: a person or thing that closely resembles another; ringer. See examples of DEAD RINGER used in a sentence.