ringer

1 of 2

noun (1)

ring·​er ˈriŋ-ər 

1

: one that sounds especially by ringing

2

a(1)

: one that enters a competition under false representations

(2)

: imposter, fake

b

: one that strongly resembles another

—often used with dead

He's a dead ringer for his father.

ringer

2 of 2

noun (2)

: one that encircles or puts a ring around (such as a quoit or horseshoe that lodges so as to surround the peg)

Synonyms of ringer

Noun (1)

• sham
• fake
• fraud
• pretender
• impostor
• actor
• deceiver
• quack

Examples of ringer in a Sentence

Noun (1)

no one was more surprised than the defendant when his lawyer turned out to be a ringer

he's a dead ringer for his grandfather

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The Bay Area native and UC Santa Barbara product was one heck of a playoff ringer for San Jose on Thursday night at Excite Ballpark. — Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026

For those who play intramural flag football on Utah’s campus, Fine could be the ringer to deliver a championship next year. — Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2026

Elsinore Ring Said got his start in motorsports as a NASCAR road course ringer, eventually participating in events over four decades in professional racing. — Nicole Comstock, CBS News, 9 Sep. 2026

So our only option was to shoot gadwall, wigeon, and ringers over water. — Alex Robinson, Outdoor Life, 9 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun (1)

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1834, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing ringer

• dead ringer
• ringer tee
• ringer T-shirt

Rhymes for ringer

• bringer
• clinger
• dinger
• inger
• slinger
• springer
• stinger
• stringer
• winger
• wringer

Kids Definition

ringer

1 of 2 noun

ring·​er ˈriŋ-ər 

1

: one that sounds especially by ringing

2

a

: one that enters a competition with a false identity

b

: one that strongly resembles another

—often used with dead

a dead ringer for the senator

ringer

2 of 2 noun

: a quoit or horseshoe that falls right over a peg