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 called ring taw. Marbles.,  Also ringers 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.

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

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. Also called: dead ringer. slang,  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 don't think Usman will have a choice. I think Khabib will have taken him back to the mountains in Dagestan after that first fight and absolutely put him through the ringer," he said.

Read more on BBC

They’re pretty much dead ringers for each other, especially when they showed up to Augusta National this week wearing the same gray quarter-zip pullovers.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Could he be a ringer in Duke intramural basketball?

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Tom Hollander is a dead ringer for Capote, while Naomi Watts’ Babe Paley is stunning and tragic.

Read more on Salon

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

Read more on BBC