ringer

¹

[ ring-er ]

noun

1. a person or thing that encircles, rings, etc.
2. a quoit or horseshoe so thrown as to encircle the peg.
3. the throw itself.
4. Also ringers. Also called ring taw. Marbles. a game in which players place marbles in a cross marked in the center of a circle, the object being to knock as many marbles as possible outside the circle by using another marble shooter.
5. Australian. a highly skilled sheep shearer.

ringer

²

[ ring-er ]

noun

1. a person or thing that rings or makes a ringing noise:

   a ringer of bells;

   a bell that is a loud ringer.

2. dead ringer ( def ).

   Synonyms: spitting image, look-alike, duplicate, doppelgänger, double

3. Slang.
   1. a racehorse, athlete, or the like entered in a competition under false representation as to identity or ability.
   2. a student paid by another to take an exam.
   3. any person or thing that is fraudulent; fake or impostor.
   4. a substitute or addition, as a professional musician hired to strengthen a school orchestra:

      We hired three ringers for the commencement concert.

ringer

/ ˈrɪŋə /

noun

1. a person or thing that rings a bell
2. slang.
   Also calleddead ringer a person or thing that is almost identical to another
3. slang.
   a stolen vehicle the identity of which has been changed by the use of the licence plate, serial number, etc, of another, usually disused, vehicle
4. a contestant, esp a horse, entered in a competition under false representations of identity, record, or ability
5. the fastest shearer in a shed
6. informal.
   the fastest or best at anything
7. a quoit thrown so as to encircle a peg
8. such a throw

Word History and Origins

Origin of ringer¹

First recorded in 1815–25; ring ¹ + -er ¹

Origin of ringer²

First recorded in 1375–1425; ring ² + -er ¹( def )

Example Sentences

"I think he's literally gone through the ringer," she said.

From BBC

Forman’s comical look at the decathlon is scored with bell ringers and yodelers, while Schlesinger’s intense “The Longest” intermixes the marathon with the attack by Palestinian terrorists on the Israeli quarters in the Olympic Village.

From Los Angeles Times

The ad touted her record in the state Assembly on housing, climate change and abortion rights and declared that she would be a “ringer” for the people in Congress.

From Los Angeles Times

Estimates are still soaring past the $20 million mark and canvases still bear the signatures of dependable ringers like Warhol, Basquiat and Picasso.

From New York Times

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