double cross
noun
a betrayal or swindle of a colleague.
an attempt to win a contest that one has agreed beforehand to lose.Compare cross (def. 21).
Genetics. a cross in which both parents are first-generation hybrids from single crosses, thus involving four inbred lines.
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Origin of double cross
First recorded in 1825–35
Definition for double cross (2 of 2)
double-cross
[ duhb-uhl-kraws, -kros ]
/ ˈdʌb əlˈkrɔs, -ˈkrɒs /
verb (used with object) Informal.
to prove treacherous to; betray or swindle, as by a double cross.
Origin of double-cross
First recorded in 1900–05
OTHER WORDS FROM double-cross
double-crosser, nounDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
British Dictionary definitions for double cross (1 of 2)
double cross
noun
a technique for producing hybrid stock, esp seed for cereal crops, by crossing the hybrids between two different pairs of inbred lines
British Dictionary definitions for double cross (2 of 2)
double-cross
verb
(tr) to cheat or betray
noun
the act or an instance of double-crossing; betrayal
Derived forms of double-cross
double-crosser, nounCollins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Idioms and Phrases with double cross
double cross
A deliberate betrayal; violation of a promise or obligation, as in They had planned a double cross, intending to keep all of the money for themselves. This usage broadens the term's earlier sense in sports gambling, where it alluded to the duplicity of a contestant who breaks his word after illicitly promising to lose. Both usages gave rise to the verb double-cross. [Late 1800s]
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.