How do you say “A dead ringer” in German?
The closest natural German equivalent is jemandem wie aus dem Gesicht geschnitten sein, which literally means “to be as if cut out of someone’s face”. English speakers use a dead ringer to mean someone or something that looks almost exactly like another. A close German expression for a striking facial resemblance. It is best for people rather than lookalike objects. Register: informal. Usage frequency: common.
Closest natural German
jemandem wie aus dem Gesicht geschnitten sein
/ˈjeːmandəm viː aʊs deːm ɡəˈzɪçt ɡəˌʃnɪtn̩ zaɪn/
- Literal meaning
- “to be as if cut out of someone’s face”
- Register
- informal
- How often it's used
- common
- Equivalence
Near-exact equivalent
94 out of 100
What a native German speaker would actually say
Use “ihrer Tante” when comparing a woman with her aunt: “Sie ist ihrer Tante wie aus dem Gesicht geschnitten”.
For objects, “sieht genauso aus wie” is more flexible. The German face expression would make an ordinary object comparison sound odd.
How close is the meaning?
- Meaning5 out of 5
- Tone5 out of 5
- Context4 out of 5
- Literal similarity2 out of 5
These ratings are editorial approximations, not measurements.
In context
English
With that haircut, Maya is a dead ringer for her aunt.
German
Mit dieser Frisur ist Maya ihrer Tante wie aus dem Gesicht geschnitten.
English
The actor was a dead ringer for our old maths teacher.
German
Der Schauspieler war unserem alten Mathelehrer wie aus dem Gesicht geschnitten.
Related expressions
Last updated 2026-11-13