doppelgänger

/ˈdɒp.əlˌɡæŋ.ər/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈdɑː.pəlˌɡæŋ.ɚ/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈdä-pəl-ˌgaŋ-ər -ˌgeŋ-, ˌdä-pəl-ˈgaŋ-, -ˈgeŋ-/ (ame, mw)

doppelgänger — noun

  • doppelgängersingular
  • doppelgängersplural

1. an unrelated person who happens to look almost identical to someone you know, or

1.名詞C1
釋義

an unrelated person who happens to look almost identical to someone you know, or — in older ghost stories — a phantom shaped like a real, living individual; for example, a stranger on the train who could pass for your sister, or a shadowy figure said to copy a person's appearance as a bad omen.

例句

Lara froze in the cafe when she spotted a doppelgänger of her late grandmother by the window.

a doppelgänger of [someone]

Tourists in Seoul kept stopping Erik because he was the doppelgänger of a famous K-pop singer.

the doppelgänger of [public figure]

同義詞
  • look-alike

    everyday, neutral term for someone who resembles another person, with no supernatural overtone

  • double

    common in film and crime contexts; can also mean a body double or stand-in

  • spitting image

    very informal idiom; emphasises an uncanny degree of resemblance

  • ringer

    informal, often in 'a dead ringer for'; stresses that the resemblance is unmistakable

文法句型

a doppelgänger of someone

someone's doppelgänger

用法筆記

Often used loosely today for a striking real-world look-alike; the original supernatural sense (a ghostly twin appearing to its living counterpart) survives mainly in horror, folklore, and literary writing. Frequently spelled without the umlaut as 'doppelganger' in everyday English.

常見錯誤

❌My twin sister is my doppelgänger.
✅My twin sister and I look alike, but a doppelgänger is someone unrelated who happens to resemble you.
💡by definition, a doppelgänger is not a relative.
❌They are doppelgängers of each other in personality.
✅They have very similar personalities.
💡doppelgänger refers to physical appearance, not character or behaviour.