dead ringer
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dead ringer
A person or thing that bears a strong resemblance (to someone or something else). Susie was such a dead ringer for Kate Winslet that sometimes people would ask her for her autograph. You mean this watch of yours isn't a real Rolex? Wow, it's a dead ringer!
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2022 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
dead ringer
A person or thing that closely resembles another; an exact counterpart. For example, Brian's a dead ringer for his Dad, or That red bike is a dead ringer for Mary's. [Late 1800s]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
dead ringer
verbMcGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
dead ringer
A person or object that exactly resembles another, an exact counterpart in appearance. The usage of “ringer” for look-alike has been around since the late 1800s, when it was used for a horse that was fraudulently substituted for another in a race. It also was applied to the person who made such a substitution, but this usage has died out. However, in 1891 the term was made more emphatic with the addition of “dead,” here used in the sense of “exact,” as it is in dead heat for an exact tie.
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer