duplicate

1 of 3

adjective

du·​pli·​cate ˈdü-pli-kət How to pronounce duplicate (audio)
 also  ˈdyü-
1
: consisting of or existing in two corresponding or identical parts or examples
duplicate invoices
2
: being the same as another
duplicate copies

duplicate

2 of 3

verb

du·​pli·​cate ˈdü-pli-ˌkāt How to pronounce duplicate (audio)
 also  ˈdyü-
duplicated; duplicating

transitive verb

1
: to make double or twofold
2
a
: to make a copy of
a cell duplicates itself when it divides
b
: to produce something equal to
trying to duplicate last year's success
c
: to do over or again often needlessly
duplicated effort

intransitive verb

: to become duplicated
also : repeat
duplicative
ˈdü-pli-ˌkā-tiv How to pronounce duplicate (audio)
 also  ˈdyü-
adjective

duplicate

3 of 3

noun

du·​pli·​cate ˈdü-pli-kət How to pronounce duplicate (audio)
 also  ˈdyü-
1
a
: either of two things exactly alike and usually produced at the same time or by the same process
b
: an additional copy of something (such as a book or stamp) already in a collection
2
: one that resembles or corresponds to another : counterpart
3
: two identical copies
used in the phrase in duplicate
Choose the Right Synonym for duplicate

reproduction, duplicate, copy, facsimile, replica mean a thing made to closely resemble another.

reproduction implies an exact or close imitation of an existing thing.

reproductions from the museum's furniture collection

duplicate implies a double or counterpart exactly corresponding to another thing.

a duplicate of a house key

copy applies especially to one of a number of things reproduced mechanically.

printed 1000 copies of the lithograph

facsimile suggests a close reproduction often of graphic matter that may differ in scale.

a facsimile of a rare book

replica implies the exact reproduction of a particular item in all details

a replica of the Mayflower

but not always in the same scale.

miniature replicas of classic cars

Examples of duplicate in a Sentence

Adjective I began receiving duplicate copies of the magazine every month. I had a duplicate key made. Verb She duplicated the video to give to family and friends. Unfortunately, the results of the first study could not be duplicated. Noun In case you lose your keys, keep a set of duplicates somewhere safe. doll carriages that are duplicates of baby carriages
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
About Harris Data Integrity Solutions Harris Data Integrity Solutions delivers industry-leading data integrity services and software to reduce duplicate medical records and minimize the ongoing cost of maintaining quality patient data. Miami Herald, 5 Mar. 2024 However, be aware that platforms use machine learning algorithms to detect duplicate content. Xinyue 'coco' Chen, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2024 Despite Milwaukee's efforts to eliminate duplicate street names, the Laytons aren't the only repeaters on city maps. Chris Foran, Journal Sentinel, 23 Jan. 2024 With a dual tape deck recorder, a duplicate copy of any cassette can be copied onto a blank tape, allowing for commercial recordings to be easily shared and bootlegged. John Morrison, SPIN, 13 Feb. 2024 Expect duplicate platforms such as Google Docs and Microsoft Office 365, among others, in this tech stack. Ellen Williams, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2024 The duplicate flight initiates a hitherto unused security measure called Protocol 42. Aatish Taseer, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2024 One of the first to point out the duplicate photos was Tony Ortiz, the publisher of a Substack called Current Revolt. María Luisa Paúl, Washington Post, 9 Jan. 2024 As on Android, there are numerous third-party apps that will do the job of hunting down and removing duplicate photos on your iPhone for you. David Nield, Popular Science, 3 Jan. 2024
Verb
In 2016, Bieber was again duplicated in wax form, this time posing shirtless at Tussauds’ Las Vegas venue. Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 1 Mar. 2024 The effort was briefed to the Pentagon’s Missile Defense Agency and referred to NATO and U.S. commands to potentially duplicate, Hecker said. Alex Horton, Washington Post, 22 Feb. 2024 Counterfeiting a logo, of course, is much easier than duplicating workmanship or high-quality hide. Mark Ellwood, Robb Report, 21 Feb. 2024 And in the absence of Patriots, the Russians no doubt will attempt to duplicate their successful bombardment of Avdiivka. David Axe, Forbes, 18 Feb. 2024 Those are numbers that can’t be replaced or duplicated. Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 15 Feb. 2024 In a multi-tenant environment, MSSPs that utilize an integrated dashboard can duplicate rules and policies easily from client to client, applying those best practices to each of their customers. Rom Hendler, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2024 About $32 million in payments by the Department of Health and Welfare were duplicated in November because of a processing error between the new Luma programs and the state’s agencies. Ian Max Stevenson, Idaho Statesman, 9 Feb. 2024 Agencies have duplicated efforts, fought turf wars, and desperately wanted for better internal coordination. Nina Jankowicz, Foreign Affairs, 7 Feb. 2024
Noun
His staff now must begin validating the signatures by weeding out duplicates and ensuring that each one belongs to a registered voter living in Alameda County. Jakob Rodgers, The Mercury News, 4 Mar. 2024 The lists are dotted with petty duplicates submitted by neighbors, often with slightly different spellings. Julian Lucas, The New Yorker, 2 Mar. 2024 There are Reddit threads explaining how to knit D.I.Y. versions, while knockoffs are sold by AliExpress, a Chinese e-commerce site known for selling counterfeit goods, as well as by street vendors in New York that some may associate more with cheap pashminas than with luxury-good duplicates. Misty White Sidell, New York Times, 19 Feb. 2024 The facilitator needs to group similar ideas and remove duplicates while retaining all substantive contributions to streamline the brainstorming process. Gleb Tsipursky, Fortune, 3 Jan. 2024 An influencer set off a debate on the ethics of promoting replicas on TikTok after her team requested the platform take down videos featuring dupes — duplicates of brand-name products — of her brand’s fruit print pajamas. Daysia Tolentino, NBC News, 27 Oct. 2023 In this sci-fi classic, an extraterrestrial race is populating Earth with pods that systematically replace humans with alien duplicates. Janey Tracey and Kevin Jacobsen, EW.com, 5 Aug. 2023 In a rare instance that more than one ballot is sent to an individual, as pointed out in an Associated Press fact-check from the 2022 election, counties have procedures to prevent duplicates from being counted. Gillian Brassil, Sacramento Bee, 25 Feb. 2024 Once upon a time there were Three Little Pigs, each sitting South in a duplicate. Frank Stewart, The Mercury News, 22 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'duplicate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Latin duplicatus, past participle of duplicare to double, from duplic-, duplex

First Known Use

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun

1532, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of duplicate was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near duplicate

Cite this Entry

“Duplicate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/duplicate. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

duplicate

1 of 3 adjective
du·​pli·​cate ˈd(y)ü-pli-kət How to pronounce duplicate (audio)
1
: having two parts exactly the same or alike
2
: being the same as another

duplicate

2 of 3 verb
du·​pli·​cate ˈd(y)ü-pli-ˌkāt How to pronounce duplicate (audio)
duplicated; duplicating
1
: to make double
2
: to make a duplicate of
duplicative adjective

duplicate

3 of 3 noun
ˈd(y)ü-pli-kət
: a thing that is exactly like another

Medical Definition

duplicate

intransitive verb
du·​pli·​cate ˈd(y)ü-pli-ˌkāt How to pronounce duplicate (audio)
duplicated; duplicating
: to become duplicate : replicate
DNA in chromosomes duplicates

Legal Definition

duplicate

1 of 2 transitive verb
du·​pli·​cate ˈdü-pli-ˌkāt, ˈdyü- How to pronounce duplicate (audio)
duplicated; duplicating
: to make a duplicate of
duplicative adjective

duplicate

2 of 2 noun
du·​pli·​cate ˈdü-pli-kət, ˈdyü- How to pronounce duplicate (audio)
: either of two things exactly alike and often produced at the same time
specifically : a counterpart identified in the Federal Rules of Evidence Rule 1001 as produced by the same impression as the original or from the same matrix or by means of photography, mechanical, or electronic rerecording, chemical reproduction, or another technique which accurately reproduces the original compare original

More from Merriam-Webster on duplicate

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