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 the senator

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

Noun (1)

• charlatan
• fake
• faker
• fakir
• fraud
• hoaxer
• humbug
• impostor
• imposter
• mountebank
• phony
• phoney
• pretender
• quack
• quacksalver
• sham

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

He is confronted by two military types who put him through the ringer with questions and checking out his car. —Pete Hammond, Deadline, 18 May 2025

In the early 2010’s, three of the department’s top brass got demoted over a cheating scandal when the Transit Services Bureau team swapped out one team member for a ringer. —Keri Blakinger, Los Angeles Times, 11 May 2025

In addition to landing this role, the 23 year-old just played a part in Alien Romulus (ironically across from older Ellie ringer Cailee Spaeny). —Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 28 Apr. 2025

All handle their vocal duties well, but Barasch, who made his Broadway debut at 10 in the 2009 revival of West Side Story, is the ringer here. —Greg Evans, Deadline, 24 Apr. 2025

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