Double

/ˈdʌb.əl/ adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang

adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang ·Top 500 ·Elementary level

Meaning at a glance

  • Primary sense: Twice the number, amount, size, etc.
  • Grammar: double is listed as adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang.
  • Nearest alternatives: duplicate, two-base hit, aberrancy, aberration.
  • Useful contrasts: half, single, a single.
  • Usage evidence: Your book is double the size of mine.

How to use "double"

  1. Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
  2. Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "double" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
  3. Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.

Meaning check

  • Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
  • Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
  • Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
  • Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?

Source and review context

This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "double" in a final draft.

If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.

Before you rely on this definition

Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "double" as the right word for your sentence.

If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "double" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.

Compare nearby meanings

  • Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
  • Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
  • Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
  • Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.

Definition decision workflow

1. Identify the role

Check whether "double" is acting as adj, adv, name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.

2. Test the nearest option

Compare it with "duplicate" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.

3. Confirm with context

Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.

Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.

Final meaning check

Before publishing a sentence with "double", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.

When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Twice the number, amount, size, etc.
  2. 2
    Collectively, both the Indianapolis 500, a day race, and the Coca-Cola 600, an evening race, both of which are run on Memorial Day weekend Sunday. Used concerning racers who (wish[/ed/ing] to) participat[e/ed/ing] in both events, typically using a private jet to travel between Indianapolis, Indiana, after the 500 and Charlotte, North Carolina, to get to the 600. US
  3. 3
    a base hit on which the batter stops safely at second base wordnet
  4. 4
    A person who resembles and stands in for another person, often for safety purposes

    "Saddam Hussein was rumored to have many doubles."

  5. 5
    raising the stakes in a card game by a factor of 2 wordnet
Show 27 more definitions
  1. 6
    A drink with two portions of alcohol.

    "On second thought, make that a double."

  2. 7
    a quantity that is twice as great as another wordnet
  3. 8
    A ghostly apparition of a living person; a doppelgänger.

    "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."

  4. 9
    someone who closely resembles a famous person (especially an actor) wordnet
  5. 10
    A sharp turn, especially a return on one's own tracks.
  6. 11
    a stand-in for movie stars to perform dangerous stunts wordnet
  7. 12
    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."

  8. 13
    A two-base hit.

    "The catcher hit a double to lead off the ninth."

  9. 14
    A call that increases certain scoring points if the last preceding bid becomes the contract.
  10. 15
    A strike in which the object ball is struck so as to make it rebound against the cushion to an opposite pocket.

    "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. 16
    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.

    "Not only did I collect on the double; I had the win and the place money as well."

  12. 17
    The narrow outermost ring on a dartboard.
  13. 18
    A hit on this ring.
  14. 19
    A tile that has the same value (i.e., the same number of pips) on both sides.
  15. 20
    A double-precision floating-point number.

    "The sine function returns a double."

  16. 21
    Two competitions, usually one league and one cup, won by the same team in a single season.
  17. 22
    A boat for two scullers.
  18. 23
    The feat of scoring twice in one game.

    "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. 24
    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. 25
    The achievement of 1000 runs and 100 wickets taken in a single season.
  21. 26
    A former French coin worth one-sixth of a sou. historical
  22. 27
    A copper coin worth one-eighth of a penny. Guernsey, historical

    "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. 28
    Playing the same part on two instruments, alternately.
  24. 29
    A double feast.
  25. 30
    Synonym of double-quick (“fast marching pace”).
  26. 31
    A secondary instrument with which a musician is skilled.

    "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. 32
    A double-cross or betrayal. dated, slang

    "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."

Verb
  1. 1
    To multiply by two. transitive

    "The company doubled their earnings per share over last quarter."

  2. 2
    increase twofold wordnet
  3. 3
    To increase by 100%, to become twice as large in size. intransitive

    "Our earnings have doubled in the last year."

  4. 4
    hit a two-base hit wordnet
  5. 5
    To be the double of; to exceed by twofold; to contain or be worth twice as much as.

    "Thus re-inforc’d, againſt the adverſe Fleet / Still doubling ours, brave Rupert leads the way."

Show 24 more definitions
  1. 6
    do double duty; serve two purposes or have two functions wordnet
  2. 7
    To fold over so as to make two folds. transitive

    "To make a pleat, double the material at the waist."

  3. 8
    make or do or perform again wordnet
  4. 9
    To clench (a fist). sometimes, transitive
  5. 10
    bend over or curl up, usually with laughter or pain wordnet
  6. 11
    To get a two-base hit.

    "The batter doubled into the corner."

  7. 12
    make a demand for (a card or suit) wordnet
  8. 13
    To join or couple. often, transitive
  9. 14
    To repeat exactly; copy. transitive
  10. 15
    To serve a second role or have a second purpose. intransitive

    "A spork is a kind of fork that doubles as a spoon."

  11. 16
    To act as substitute for (another theatrical performer in a certain role, etc). ambitransitive, sometimes

    "Laforêt, who (as the French express it), doubles Lainez, that is, performs the same characters in his absence."

  12. 17
    To play (both one part and another, in the same play, etc).

    "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 : […]"

  13. 18
    To turn sharply, following a winding course. intransitive
  14. 19
    To sail around (a headland or other point).

    "Sailing along the coast, he doubled the promontory of Carthage."

  15. 20
    To duplicate (a part) either in unison or at the octave above or below it.
  16. 21
    To be capable of performing (upon an additional instrument). intransitive, usually
  17. 22
    To make a call that will double certain scoring points if the preceding bid becomes the contract.
  18. 23
    To double down. intransitive
  19. 24
    To cause (a ball) to rebound from a cushion before entering the pocket.
  20. 25
    To go or march at twice the normal speed. intransitive

    ""You double down to the harbour, my lad," said the Captain to Strickland, "and sign on. You've got your papers." Strickland set off at once, and that was the last Captain Nichols saw of him."

  21. 26
    To multiply the strength or effect of by two. transitive

    "Sorry, this store does not double coupons."

  22. 27
    To unite, as ranks or files, so as to form one from each two.
  23. 28
    To transmit simultaneously on the same channel as another station, either unintentionally or deliberately, causing interference. informal

    "Could you please repeat your last transmission? Another station was doubling with you."

  24. 29
    To operate as a double agent. intransitive

    "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 […]"

Adjective
  1. 1
    Made up of two matching or complementary elements. not-comparable

    "The closet has double doors."

  2. 2
    Of twice the quantity. not-comparable

    "Give me a double serving of mashed potatoes."

  3. 3
    Of a family relationship, related on both the maternal and paternal sides of a family. not-comparable

    "He's my double cousin as my mother's sister married my father's brother."

  4. 4
    Designed for two (people, cars, etc.). not-comparable

    "a double room"

  5. 5
    Folded in two; composed of two layers. not-comparable
Show 6 more definitions
  1. 6
    Stooping; bent over. not-comparable
  2. 7
    Having two aspects; ambiguous. not-comparable

    "a double meaning"

  3. 8
    False, deceitful, or hypocritical. not-comparable

    "a double life"

  4. 9
    Of flowers, having more than the normal number of petals. not-comparable
  5. 10
    Of an instrument, sounding an octave lower. not-comparable

    "a double bass"

  6. 11
    Of time, twice as fast. not-comparable
Adjective
  1. 1
    having two meanings with intent to deceive wordnet
  2. 2
    large enough for two wordnet
  3. 3
    used of homologous chromosomes associated in pairs in synapsis wordnet
  4. 4
    twice as great or many wordnet
  5. 5
    consisting of or involving two parts or components usually in pairs wordnet
Show 2 more definitions
  1. 6
    having more than one decidedly dissimilar aspects or qualities wordnet
  2. 7
    used of flowers having more than the usual number of petals in crowded or overlapping arrangements wordnet
Adverb
  1. 1
    Twice over; twofold; doubly. not-comparable

    "February 7 1736, Jonathan Swift, letter to Alexander Pope I was double their age."

  2. 2
    Two together; two at a time. not-comparable

    "When I met the twins, I thought I was seeing double."

  3. 3
    Into two halves or sections. not-comparable

    "The old man was bent double under his heavy burden."

Adverb
  1. 1
    to double the degree wordnet
  2. 2
    two together wordnet
  3. 3
    downward and forward wordnet
Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A surname.

Synonyms

All synonyms
duplicatetwo-base hitaberrancyaberrationaccelerateact for

Antonyms

halfsinglea singlealter

Example

"Your book is double the size of mine."

Common questions

What does "double" mean?

Twice the number, amount, size, etc.

What is a synonym for "double"?

Common synonyms include: duplicate, two-base hit, aberrancy, aberration, accelerate, act for.

How do you use "double" in a sentence?

Your book is double the size of mine.

How do you pronounce "double"?

Pronounced /ˈdʌb.əl/.

Etymology

PIE word *dwóh₁ From Middle English double, from Old French doble, double, from Latin duplus (“twofold”). Doublet of doppio and duple.

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