doppelgänger
noun
dop·pel·gäng·er
ˈdä-pəl-ˌgaŋ-ər 
-ˌgeŋ-,
ˌdä-pəl-ˈgaŋ-,
-ˈgeŋ-
variants
or doppelganger
1
a
: double sense 2a
said she had seen his doppelgänger
c
: a person who has the same name as another
2
: a ghostly counterpart (see counterpart sense 3a) of a living person
Did you know?
According to German folklore, all living creatures have a spirit double who is invisible but identical to the living individual. These second selves are perceived as being distinct from ghosts (which appear only after death), and sometimes they are described as the spiritual opposite or negative of their human counterparts. German writers coined the word Doppelgänger (from doppel-, meaning "double," and -gänger, meaning "goer") to refer to such specters.
Examples of doppelgänger in a Sentence
In the story, the character is haunted by a doppelgänger.
at the mall today I saw someone who could be your doppelgänger
Recent Examples on the Web
And then there are the cats—dozens of them, prowling or stoic doppelgangers of the real-life felines who roamed Abercrombie’s Hyde Park Victorian.
—
Jeremy Lybarger, ARTnews.com, 26 Mar. 2025
In the show, Sarah Manning (Maslany) witnesses the death of doppelganger Beth Childs (also Maslany), and realises they — and all the others — were created via the sinister experiments of Project Leda.
12.
—Richard Edwards, Space.com, 26 Mar. 2025
According to Pike and Diaz, around 10 million people across platforms weighed in, most of whom agreed that Christine was essentially Scherzinger's doppelgänger.
—Tommy Tuberville, Newsweek, 7 Mar. 2025
This is fun sci-fi TV, doing twisty multiverse, evil-doppelgänger stuff really well.
—New Atlas, 6 Mar. 2025
In desperation, Elisabeth conceives, and is viciously destroyed by, her own younger, more bankable doppelgänger.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 3 Mar. 2025
The story line is primarily a way to explore Annie’s insecurities, with Hughie made to feel guilty and regretful about his dalliance with the doppelgänger instead of ever getting to process his own reaction to the revelation.
—Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 21 Feb. 2025
Examples of play, continued The doppelgänger Mel and Ilya, for their own reasons, stalk Heidi and Sky back to the hotel room where the Maenad and Dragon engage in carnal relations.
—Linda Codega, Them, 14 Feb. 2025
Was it written in the script that he’d be interviewed by a doppelgänger?
—Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 31 Jan. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Jeremy Lybarger, ARTnews.com, 26 Mar. 2025
In the show, Sarah Manning (Maslany) witnesses the death of doppelganger Beth Childs (also Maslany), and realises they — and all the others — were created via the sinister experiments of Project Leda.
12.
—Richard Edwards, Space.com, 26 Mar. 2025
According to Pike and Diaz, around 10 million people across platforms weighed in, most of whom agreed that Christine was essentially Scherzinger's doppelgänger.
—Tommy Tuberville, Newsweek, 7 Mar. 2025
This is fun sci-fi TV, doing twisty multiverse, evil-doppelgänger stuff really well.
—New Atlas, 6 Mar. 2025
In desperation, Elisabeth conceives, and is viciously destroyed by, her own younger, more bankable doppelgänger.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 3 Mar. 2025
The story line is primarily a way to explore Annie’s insecurities, with Hughie made to feel guilty and regretful about his dalliance with the doppelgänger instead of ever getting to process his own reaction to the revelation.
—Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 21 Feb. 2025
Examples of play, continued The doppelgänger Mel and Ilya, for their own reasons, stalk Heidi and Sky back to the hotel room where the Maenad and Dragon engage in carnal relations.
—Linda Codega, Them, 14 Feb. 2025
Was it written in the script that he’d be interviewed by a doppelgänger?
—Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 31 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Doppelgänger.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/doppelg%C3%A4nger. Accessed 22 May. 2025.
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