SINCE 1828
double whammy
nounDefinition of double whammy
: a combination of two usually adverse forces, circumstances, or effects
Examples of double whammy in a Sentence
With the cold weather and the high cost of heating fuel, homeowners were hit with a double whammy this winter.
Recent Examples on the Web
The likelihood of a U.S. withdrawal from Syria or Afghanistan is a double whammy for China. — Michael Singh, WSJ, "Beijing’s Curious Silence on the Syria Withdrawal," 8 Jan. 2019 Now, in their 40s, they’ve been hit with a double whammy—infertility that promises to be unyielding, at least in the normal course of events, and careers that have failed to thrive. — Joe Morgenstern, WSJ, "‘Private Life’ Review: A Couple in Creative Crisis," 4 Oct. 2018 The maker of tractors, combines and harvesters could be hit with a double whammy in the trade dispute. — Adam Shell, USA TODAY, "Trump trade war with China could hurt these 10 stocks," 22 June 2018 Unlike the federal government, states generally can’t run budget deficits, which typically leads to spending cuts and layoffs during a recession—a double whammy because private-sector employment and investment is often also shrinking. — Nick Timiraos, WSJ, "States Face Crunch If Fed’s Tool Kit Is Limited in Next Recession," 10 Sep. 2018 The presence of the ball gag in Moore's joke is a double whammy. — Jenny Hollander, Marie Claire, "Demi Moore's Harvey Weinstein Joke at Bruce Willis' Roast Was All Kinds of Awful," 30 July 2018 Meanwhile, Trump’s get-tough trade policies hit Harley-Davidson with a double whammy. — Eamon Barrett, Fortune, "Trump's trade war comes to Wisconsin," 30 June 2018 With Curry already out, double whammies don’t get much tougher than this. — Sam Amick, USA TODAY, "Warriors star Klay Thompson suffers fractured thumb, will be re-evaluated March 22," 14 Mar. 2018 That is because many consumers outside the U.S. face a double whammy when—like now—the dollar gets stronger at the same time that oil prices rise. — Tom Fairless, WSJ, "Steep Oil and Strong Dollar Make Toxic Brew for Global Economies," 17 June 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'double whammy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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