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Evil twin

Evil twin

Meaning

An imaginary double, humorously referred to in order to explain the uncharacteristic bad behaviour of a normally moral person. Usually used light-heartedly. The expression formed as an allusion to plots in films involving actual evil twins.

Examples

Jane’s such a good girl and I took it as read that she would come to the wedding dressed appropriately, but she’s turned up in full goth makeup. At first I thought it must have been her evil twin.

Where did it originate?

USA, 2004.

Where is it used?

Worldwide, but mostly amongst the young and hip.

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Gary Martin is a writer and researcher on the origins of phrases and the creator of the Phrase Finder website. Over the past 26 years more than 700 million of his pages have been downloaded by readers. He is one of the most popular and trusted sources of information on phrases and idioms.

Gary Martin

Writer and researcher on the origins of phrases and the creator of the Phrase Finder website. Over the past 26 years more than 700 million of his pages have been downloaded by readers. He is one of the most popular and trusted sources of information on phrases and idioms.
Evil twin

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