doppelganger

WOTD – 15 July 2009    

See also doppelgänger, and Doppelgänger

English

Alternative forms

• doppelgänger

Etymology

Wikipedia

Borrowing from German Doppelgänger, “ghostly spirit” literally “double walker”, from Doppel (“duplicate, double”) + gänger (“goer”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA: /ˈdɒpl̩.ɡæŋ.ə(ɹ)/ X-SAMPA: /"dQpl=.g{N.@(r)/
• (US) IPA: /ˈdɑpl̩.ɡæŋ.ɚ/ X-SAMPA: /"dApl=.g{N.@`/

Noun

doppelganger (plural doppelgangers)

1. A ghostly double of a living person, especially one that haunts such a person.
2. An evil twin.
3. A remarkably similar double.
4. A person who has the same name as another.
5. A fantastic monster that takes the forms of people, usually after killing them.

Translations

ghostly double of a living person

• Bulgarian: двойник (bg) m (dvojnik)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Danish: dobbeltgænger (da) c
• Dutch: dubbelganger (nl) m and f
• Finnish: kaksoisolento (fi)
• German: Doppelgänger (de) m
• Irish: taise (ga) f

• Japanese: ドッペルゲンガー (dopperugengā)
• Korean: 도플갱어 (dopeulgaeng-eo)
• Norwegian: dobbeltgjenger (no) m
• Polish: sobowtór (pl) m
• Russian: допельгангер (ru) (dopel’gánger) m , двойник (ru) (dvojník) m 
• Spanish: otro yo (es)
• Swedish: dubbelgångare (sv) c

evil twin

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Finnish: kaksoisolento (fi)

• Italian: gemello malvagio (it) m
• Spanish: gemelo malvado (es)

remarkably similar double

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Danish: dobbeltgænger (da) c
• Dutch: dubbelganger (nl)
• Finnish: kaksoisolento (fi)
• German: Doppelgänger (de) m

• Greek: σωσίας (el) m (sosías)
• Italian: sosia (it) m
• Norwegian: dobbeltgjenger (no) m
• Polish: sobowtór (pl)
• Spanish: sosias (es) m
• Swedish: dubbelgångare (sv)

person who has the same name as another

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Danish: navnebror (da) c
• Finnish: kaima (fi)
• German: Namensvetter (de) m

• Serbo-Croatian: imenjak (sh) m
• Spanish: tocayo (es) m
• Swedish: namne (sv) c
• Turkish: adaş (tr)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

Translations to be checked

• Irish: taise (ga) f

• Mandarin: 分身 (fēn shēn)