double-blind

American  

[duhb-uhl-blahynd] / ˈdʌb əlˈblaɪnd /

adjective

1. of or relating to an experiment or clinical trial in which neither the subjects nor the researchers know which subjects are receiving the active medication, treatment, etc., and which are not: a technique for eliminating subjective bias from the test results.

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double-blind British  

adjective

1. of or relating to an experiment to discover reactions to certain commodities, drugs, etc, in which neither the experimenters nor the subjects know the particulars of the test items during the experiments Compare single-blind

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Etymology

Origin of double-blind

First recorded in 1935–40

Compare meaning

How does double-blind compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• single-blind vs. double-blind

Example Sentences

UniQure said Monday that the FDA “strongly recommended uniQure conduct a prospective, randomized, double-blind, sham surgery-controlled study.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 7, 2026

In minutes from the FDA’s Type A meeting—a meeting to discuss stalled development programs—the agency recommended uniQure conduct a further randomized, double-blind, sham surgery-controlled study, the company said.

From Barron's • Mar. 2, 2026

The trial was double-blind, meaning neither the patients nor their doctors knew who received the active treatment.

From Science Daily • Oct. 21, 2025

But to move from hypothesis to proven treatment, he says, the scientific community urgently needs double-blind, randomized, controlled trials—the gold standard for treatment research—on nicotine therapy for post-acute infection syndromes.

From Slate • Jun. 11, 2025

The trial is a double-blind study, so no one knows who is on the drug and who is taking the placebo, with researchers monitoring changes in iron levels in all participants.

From BBC • Feb. 11, 2025