See also: Double, doublé, Doublé, and double-

English

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English numbers ()
 ←  1 2 3  → 
    Cardinal: two
    Ordinal: second
    Abbreviated ordinal: 2nd
    Latinate ordinal: secondary
    Reverse order ordinal: second last, second to last, second from last, last but one
    Latinate reverse order ordinal: penultimate
    Adverbial: two times, twice
    Multiplier: twofold
    Latinate multiplier: double
    Distributive: doubly
    Germanic collective: pair, twosome
    Collective of n parts: doublet, couple, couplet
    Greek or Latinate collective: dyad
    Metric collective prefix: double-
    Greek collective prefix: di-, duo-
    Latinate collective prefix: bi-
    Fractional: half
    Metric fractional prefix: demi-
    Latinate fractional prefix: semi-
    Greek fractional prefix: hemi-
    Elemental: twin, doublet
    Greek prefix: deutero-
    Number of musicians: duo, duet, duplet
    Number of years: biennium

Etymology

PIE word
*dwóh₁

    From Middle English double, from Old French doble, double, from Latin duplus (twofold). Doublet of doppio and duple.

    Pronunciation

    Adjective

    double (not comparable)

    1. Made up of two matching or complementary elements.
      The closet has double doors.
      • 1910, Emerson Hough, “A Lady in Company”, in The Purchase Price: Or The Cause of Compromise, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
        [] it is not fair of you to bring against mankind double weapons ! Such is not the usage of civilized warfare. Dangerous enough you are as woman alone, without bringing to your aid those gifts of mind suited to problems which men have been accustomed to arrogate to themselves.”
      • 2013 August 10, Lexington, “Keeping the mighty honest”, in The Economist[1], volume 408, number 8848, archived from the original on 30 September 2020:
        The [Washington] Post's proprietor through those turbulent [Watergate] days, Katharine Graham, held a double place in Washington’s hierarchy: at once regal Georgetown hostess and scrappy newshound, ready to hold the establishment to account.
    2. Of twice the quantity.
      Give me a double serving of mashed potatoes.
      Britain's population density used to be double that of China.
      • 2019 January 26, Kitty Empire [pseudonym], “The Streets review – the agony and ecstasy of a great everyman”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian[2], London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 8 April 2019:
        The 40-year-old [Mike Skinner] is happy to put his body on the line in other ways, swapping a mug of tea for a fan's double pint of lager and messily necking it in one.
      • 2024 May 23, Laura He, “Bargain-hungry Americans are flocking to Temu and making its Chinese owner very rich”, in CNN Business[3], archived from the original on 15 August 2024:
        The Shanghai-based company reported Wednesday that net profit soared 246% to 28 billion yuan ($3.9 billion) in the first quarter of 2024, more than double the average analyst estimate of 12.62 billion yuan ($1.7 billion), according to LSEG data.
    3. Of a family relationship, related on both the maternal and paternal sides of a family.
      He's my double cousin as my mother's sister married my father's brother.
    4. Designed for two (people, cars, etc.).
      a double room
      a double garage
    5. Folded in two; composed of two layers.
    6. Stooping; bent over.
    7. Having two aspects; ambiguous.
      a double meaning
      • 1927, Ernest Bramah [pseudonym; Ernest Brammah Smith], Max Carrados Mysteries:
        Assuming the accuracy of his information, the curious fact was established that Mr Rigby Lacksome, ostensibly in England to attend the book sales, had prompted a convenient organization to carry out a raid on a certain historic building, while he himself immediately appeared on the scene with an arrangement to make good the damage. [] Was there, indeed, some double purpose here at work?
    8. False, deceitful, or hypocritical.
      a double life
      • c. 1515–1516, published 1568, John Skelton, Againſt venemous tongues enpoyſoned with ſclaunder and falſe detractions &c.:
        A fals double tunge is more fiers and fell
        Then Cerberus the cur couching in the kenel of hel;
        Wherof hereafter, I thinke for to write,
        Of fals double tunges in the diſpite.
    9. Of flowers, having more than the normal number of petals.
    10. (music) Of an instrument, sounding an octave lower.
      a double bass
    11. (music) Of time, twice as fast.

    Synonyms

    Antonyms

    • (antonym(s) of made up of two matching or complementary elements): half
    • (antonym(s) of of twice the quantity): half

    Derived terms

    Descendants

    • Gulf Arabic: دبل (dabal)

    Translations

    See also

    Number 1 2 3 4 5
    Modifier single / solo double / twofold triple / threefold quadruple / fourfold quintuple / pentuple / fivefold
    Whole loner / singleton / monad pair / couple / twosome / duo / dyad trio / threesome / triad / troika foursome / quartet / tetrad fivesome / quintet / pentad
    Part only one / singlet twin / one of two / doublet triplet / one of three quadruplet / one of four quintuplet / pentuplet / one of five
    Number 6 7 8 9 10
    Modifier sextuple / hextuple / sixfold septuple / heptuple / sevenfold octuple / eightfold ninefold / nonuple tenfold / decuple
    Whole sixsome / sextet / hexad sevensome / septet / heptad eightsome / octet / octad ninesome / nonet / ennead tensome / decet / decad
    Part sextuplet / hextuplet / one of six one of seven / septuplet / heptuplet octuplet / one of eight one of nine / nonuplet one of ten / decuplet
    Number 11 12 13 100 many
    Modifier elevenfold / undecuple / hendecuple twelvefold / duodecuple thirteenfold / tredecuple a hundredfold / centuple multiple
    Whole elevensome twelvesome thirteensome hundredsome
    Part one of eleven / undecuplet / hendecuplet one of twelve / duodecuplet one of thirteen / tredecuplet one of a hundred / centuplet one of many / multiplet

    Adverb

    double (not comparable)

    1. Twice over; twofold; doubly.
    2. Two together; two at a time.
      When I met the twins, I thought I was seeing double.
      There are only a few beds, so some of the children will have to sleep double for the night.
    3. Into two halves or sections.
      The old man was bent double under his heavy burden.

    Synonyms

    Noun

    double (plural doubles)

    1. Twice the number, amount, size, etc.
      I did double his sales this month.
    2. A person who resembles and stands in for another person, often for safety purposes
      Saddam Hussein was rumored to have many doubles.
    3. A drink with two portions of alcohol.
      On second thought, make that a double.
    4. Two shifts of work back to back.
      I work a double this weekend.
    5. A ghostly apparition of a living person; a doppelgänger.
      • 1886, Peter Christen Asbj&oslash￵rnsen, translated by H.L. Brækstad, Folk and Fairy Tales, page 71:
        According to the description our captain had given me of Peter Sandaker once when he had dropped behind on the march, he was particularly good at telling tales and stories about goblin-birds, doubles, and fairies, and had a special fancy for entering into the most minute details, whenever he commenced telling about one or the other of the eighteen bears he had killed in his time.
    6. A sharp turn, especially a return on one's own tracks.
    7. A redundant item for which an identical item already exists.
      I have more than 200 stamps in my collection but they're not all unique: some are doubles.
      Before printing the photos, Liam deleted the doubles.
    8. (baseball) A two-base hit.
      The catcher hit a double to lead off the ninth.
    9. (bridge) A call that increases certain scoring points if the last preceding bid becomes the contract.
    10. (billiards, snooker) A strike in which the object ball is struck so as to make it rebound against the cushion to an opposite pocket.
      • 2023 May 1, Steve Sutcliffe, “World Snooker Championship 2023 final: Luca Brecel beats Mark Selby for first world title”, in BBC Sport:
        Brecel fired in doubles, a succession of stunning long pots and seemingly cleared balls at will as he rattled through the first four frames in under an hour.
    11. A bet on two horses in different races in which any winnings from the first race are placed on the horse in the later race.
      • 2005, Kenneth Brown, ...and I Survived: A Barnardo Boy's Memoir, page 55:
        Not only did I collect on the double; I had the win and the place money as well.
    12. (darts) The narrow outermost ring on a dartboard.
    13. (darts) A hit on this ring.
    14. (dominoes) A tile that has the same value (i.e., the same number of pips) on both sides.
    15. (programming) A double-precision floating-point number.
      The sine function returns a double.
    16. (soccer) Two competitions, usually one league and one cup, won by the same team in a single season.
    17. (rowing) A boat for two scullers.
    18. (sports) The feat of scoring twice in one game.
      • 2010 December 28, Owen Phillips, “Sunderland 0 - 2 Blackpool”, in BBC[4]:
        DJ Campbell grabbed a second-half double as Blackpool made Sunderland pay for a host of missed chances to secure a fifth away league win of the season.
    19. (sports, chiefly swimming and track) The feat of winning two events in a single meet or competition.
      In 1996, Michael Johnson achieved a double by winning both the 200 and 400 meter dashes.
    20. (cricket) The achievement of 1000 runs and 100 wickets taken in a single season.
    21. (historical) A former French coin worth one-sixth of a sou.
    22. (historical, Guernsey) A copper coin worth one-eighth of a penny.
      • 1974, GB Edwards, The Book of Ebenezer Le Page, New York, published 2007, page 196:
        As for doubles, they are not worth anything now; and I have still got an egg-cupful my mother used to keep handy to give the baker change from a farthing.
    23. (music) Playing the same part on two instruments, alternately.
    24. (Christianity) A double feast.
    25. Synonym of double-quick (fast marching pace).
    26. (music) A secondary instrument with which a musician is skilled.
      • 2020 January 4, Bret Pimentel, “Woodwind doubling and saxophone problems”, in Bret Pimentel, woodwinds[5]:
        The saxophone is a valuable and rewarding double, and opens up many gigs that aren’t available to players of just the “orchestral” woodwinds.
    27. (slang, dated) A double-cross or betrayal.
      • 1880, Hawley Smart, False Cards, page 216:
        His fellows had chaffed him much upon the way that astute adventurer had bamboozled him, or, in their vernacular, "put the double on him," and vowed that all his energies should be devoted to a return match.
    28. A double agent.
      • 1953, Ian Fleming, “The Bleeding Heart”, in Casino Royale, London: Pan Books, published 1955, page 189:
        'This is 007 speaking. This is an open line. It's an emergency. Can you hear me? Pass this on at once. 3030 was a double, working for Redland.

    Derived terms

    Translations

    The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

    Verb

    double (third-person singular simple present doubles, present participle doubling, simple past and past participle doubled)

    1. (transitive) To multiply by two.
      The company doubled their earnings per share over last quarter.
    2. (intransitive) To increase by 100%, to become twice as large in size.
      Our earnings have doubled in the last year.
    3. To be the double of; to exceed by twofold; to contain or be worth twice as much as.
    4. (transitive) To fold over so as to make two folds.
      To make a pleat, double the material at the waist.
    5. (transitive, sometimes followed by up) To clench (a fist).
    6. (baseball) To get a two-base hit.
      The batter doubled into the corner.
    7. (transitive, often followed by together or up) To join or couple.
    8. (transitive) To repeat exactly; copy.
    9. (intransitive) To serve a second role or have a second purpose. [with as]
      A spork is a kind of fork that doubles as a spoon.
    10. (ambitransitive, sometimes with "for") To act as substitute for (another theatrical performer in a certain role, etc).
      • 1801, Francis William Blagdon, Paris as it was and as it is, published 1803, II, xli, 60:
        Laforêt, who (as the French express it), doubles Lainez, that is, performs the same characters in his absence.
      • 1814, Elizabeth Hervey, The Mourtray Family: Third Edition, page 31:
        [] and when she attempted to double the part of her mother, she equally failed in playing the great or agreeable lady.
    11. (theater) To play (both one part and another, in the same play, etc).
      • 1878, lady Isabella Emma E. Schuster, Hands Not Hearts, page 141:
        When, therefore, Briggs, the sedate, middle-aged individual, who in the Markham household doubles the roles of butler and valet, makes his appearance, his master affects to be in a great hurry, looks at his watch, and says : []
      • 1916, The Moving Picture World, page 335:
        Miss Theby doubles in the part of Rose and the native girl in the Philippines. This is a problem plot in which a young man leaves the girl of his choice because she has had an affair in her earlier years. He goes to the Philippines, []
      • 1997, Roger Lewis, The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, Hal Leonard Corporation, →ISBN:
        In On the Beat he doubles the parts of a constable and a gang-leader. Norman was all over the place.
      • 2013, Hy Rothstein, Barton Whaley, The Art and Science of Military Deception, Artech House, →ISBN, page 164:
        In his case the matter is simplified by the fact that the head of his Deception Staff doubles the roles of author and producer. The Commander therefore tells him what sort of deception he needs, examines the plans produced for him []
    12. (intransitive) To turn sharply, following a winding course.
    13. (nautical) To sail around (a headland or other point).
    14. (music) To duplicate (a part) either in unison or at the octave above or below it.
    15. (music, intransitive, usually followed by "on") To be capable of performing (upon an additional instrument).
    16. (bridge) To make a call that will double certain scoring points if the preceding bid becomes the contract.
    17. (card games, intransitive) To double down.
    18. (billiards, snooker, pool) To cause (a ball) to rebound from a cushion before entering the pocket.
    19. (intransitive) To go or march at twice the normal speed.
    20. (transitive) To multiply the strength or effect of by two.
      Sorry, this store does not double coupons.
    21. (military) To unite, as ranks or files, so as to form one from each two.
    22. (radio, informal, of a station) To transmit simultaneously on the same channel as another station, either unintentionally or deliberately, causing interference.
      Could you please repeat your last transmission? Another station was doubling with you.
    23. (espionage, intransitive) To operate as a double agent.
      • 1973, National Lampoon, page 12:
        Was this simply the cover name of an Allied spy-code named the Brass Monkey? [] The possibility that the Brass Monkey himself was "doubling" (with headquarters' approval, of course) is too logical []

    Synonyms

    Antonyms

    Derived terms

    Translations

    The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

    See also

    Anagrams

    Chinese

    Etymology

    From English double.

    Pronunciation


    Noun

    double

    1. (Hong Kong Cantonese) times; -fold (Classifier: c)
      使double使double [Hong Kong Cantonese]  ―  sai2 do1 jat1 go3 dap1 bou4 [Jyutping]  ―  to use onefold more

    Synonyms

    Verb

    double

    1. (Hong Kong Cantonese) to double; to increase by 100%

    Synonyms

    References

    French

    Etymology

      Inherited from Old French doble, from Latin duplus.

      Pronunciation

      Adjective

      French numbers ()
       ←  1 2 3  → 
          Cardinal: deux
          Ordinal: deuxième, second
          Ordinal abbreviation: 2e, 2d, (nonstandard) 2ème, (nonstandard) 2nd
          Multiplier: double
          Fractional: demi, moitié

      double (plural doubles)

      1. double (all senses), two
        Il s'agit d'une phrase à double sens.
        It is a phrase of two sentences.
      2. (music) sixteenth note
        une double crochea sixteenth note

      Derived terms

      Descendants

      Noun

      double m (plural doubles)

      1. double (twice the number, amount, etc.)
        Je n'en avais pas assez, alors j'en acheté le double.
        (please add an English translation of this usage example)
      2. duplicate (an identical copy)
        Faire un double de ses clés.
        (please add an English translation of this usage example)
      3. (baseball) double

      Verb

      double

      1. inflection of doubler:
        1. first/third-person singular present indicative/subjunctive
        2. second-person singular imperative

      Further reading