double take

dou·ble take

D d

Transcription

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [duhb-uh l teyk]
- /ˈdʌb əl teɪk/

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [duhb-uh l teyk]
- /ˈdʌb əl teɪk/

Definitions of double take words

noun double take a rapid or surprised second look, either literal or figurative, at a person or situation whose significance had not been completely grasped at first: His friends did a double take when they saw how much weight he had lost. 1
noun double take delayed surprise 1
noun double take An abrupt movement, used, for example, as a comical reaction to a surprising sight, in which someone casually sees something, briefly stops looking at it, realizes what it is, and snaps attention back to it with an expression of surprise or disbelief. 0

See all 3 definitions of double take

Information block about the term

Origin of double take

First appearance:

before 1935

One of the 8% newest English words

An Americanism dating back to 1935-40

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Double take

noun

adjective

verb

adverb

pronoun

preposition

conjunction

determiner

exclamation

Full grammatical hierarchy of Double take

double take popularity

A pretty common term. Usually people know it’s meaning, but prefer to use a more spread out synonym. About 31% of English native speakers know the meaning and use word.

According to our data about 59% of words is more used. This is a rare but used term. It occurs in the pages of specialized literature and in the speech of educated people.

double take usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Synonyms for double take

noun double take

afterthought — If you do or say something as an afterthought, you do or say it after something else as an addition, perhaps without careful thought.
second thought — Often, second thoughts. reservation about a previous action, position, decision, judgment, or the like: He had second thoughts about his decision.
arriere-pensee — an unrevealed thought or intention
delayed reaction — response after an interval

All 4 Synonyms of double take