dead ringer

noun

, Slang.

1. a person or thing that closely resembles another; ringer:

   That old car is a dead ringer for the one we used to own.

Word History and Origins

Origin of dead ringer¹

First recorded in 1890–95

Idioms and Phrases

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]

Example Sentences

And, he wrote, their focus on the specifics of their situations ignored Bruen’s guidance that a historic law does not have to be a “dead ringer” to support a modern one.

From Los Angeles Times

The cashier was mum on the “secret sauce,” but that chili mayo is a dead ringer for the popular bang bang sauce.

From Seattle Times

They are doppelgangers, dead ringers with basset hound eyes a signature feature.

From Los Angeles Times

But on this day in early July, with his grown-out mustache and sideburns, Shaw, 53, was a dead ringer for his father in “Jaws.”

From New York Times

“So even if a modern-day regulation is not a dead ringer for historical precursors, it still may be analogous enough to pass constitutional muster.”

From New York Times