spitting image

noun

Informal.

1. spit.

spitting image

noun

1. Also called: spit.  spit and image. informal,  a person who bears a strong physical resemblance to another, esp to a relative

Word History and Origins

Origin of spitting image¹

1925–30; from the phrase spit and image ( spit ¹ ) by confusion of spit and with spittin'; compare earlier the very spit of the exact likeness of

Word History and Origins

Origin of spitting image¹

C19: modification of spit and image, from _spit ¹ (as in the phrase the very spit of, the exact likeness of (someone))

Idioms and Phrases

A precise resemblance, especially in closely related persons. For example, Dirk is the spitting image of his grandfather. This idiom alludes to the earlier use of the noun spit for “likeness,” in turn probably derived from an old proverb, “as like as one as if he had been spit out of his mouth” (c. 1400). The current idiom dates from about 1900.