dou |ble crea m N‑UNCOUNT Double cream is very thick cream. [BRIT ] in AM, use heavy cream
dou ble-cro ss (double-crosses , double-crossing , double-crossed ) VERB If someone you trust double-crosses you, they do something which harms you instead of doing something they had promised to do. [INFORMAL ] □ [V n] Don't try and double-cross me, Taylor, because I'll kill you.
dou ble-dea ling N‑UNCOUNT Double-dealing is behaviour which is deliberately deceitful. □ Marriages were broken and lives ruined by the revelation of double-dealing.
dou ble-de cker (double-deckers )
1 N‑COUNT A double-decker or a double-decker bus is a bus that has two levels, so that passengers can sit upstairs or downstairs. [mainly BRIT ]
2 ADJ [ADJ n] Double-decker items or structures have two layers or levels instead of one. □ …a double-decker sandwich.
dou ble-di git ADJ [ADJ n] A double-digit number is between 10 and 99. □ Australia had 15 years of double-digit inflation.
dou ble-e dged
1 ADJ If you say that a comment is double-edged , you mean that it has two meanings, so that you are not sure whether the person who said it is being critical or is giving praise. □ Even his praise is double-edged.
2 ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] If you say that something is double-edged , you mean that its positive effects are balanced by its negative effects, or that its negative effects are greater. □ But tourism is double-edged, boosting the economy but damaging the environment.
3 a double-edged sword → see sword
dou|ble en|ten|dre /duː b ə l ɒntɒ ndrə/ (double entendres ) N‑VAR A double entendre is a word or phrase that has two meanings, one of which is rude and often sexual. □ He is a master of the pun and the double entendre.
dou |ble fau lt (double faults ) N‑COUNT In tennis, if a player serves a double fault , they make a mistake with both serves and lose the point.
dou ble-gla ze (double-glazes , double-glazing , double-glazed ) VERB If someone double-glazes a house or its windows, they fit windows that have two layers of glass which keeps the inside of the house warmer and quieter. [mainly BRIT ] □ [V n] The company is now offering to double-glaze the windows for £3,900. □ [have n V -ed] We recently had our house double-glazed. ● double-glazed ADJ □ …double-glazed windows…
dou |ble gla z|ing also double-glazing N‑UNCOUNT If someone has double glazing in their house, their windows are fitted with two layers of glass. People put in double glazing in order to keep buildings warmer or to keep out noise. [mainly BRIT ]
dou ble-hea der (double-headers ) in AM, also use doubleheader N‑COUNT A double-header is a sporting contest between two teams that involves two separate games being played, often on the same day. [mainly AM ]
dou |ble li fe (double lives ) N‑COUNT [usu sing] If you say that someone is living a double life , you mean that they lead two separate and very different lives, and they appear to be a different person in each. □ She threatened to publicly expose his double life if he left her.
dou ble-pa rk (double-parks , double-parking , double-parked ) VERB If someone double-parks their car or their car double-parks , they park in a road by the side of another parked car. □ [V n] Murray double-parked his car. □ [V ] The car pulled in and double-parked in front of the town hall.
dou ble-qui ck ADV [ADV after v] If you say that you will do something double-quick , you are emphasizing that you will do it very quickly. [INFORMAL , EMPHASIS ] □ Don't worry. We'll have you out of here double-quick. ● PHRASE In double-quick time means the same as double-quick . □ I was over the fence in double-quick time.
double|speak /dʌ b ə lspiːk/ N‑UNCOUNT If you refer to what someone says as doublespeak , you are criticizing them for presenting things in a way that is intended to hide the truth or give people the wrong idea. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ …the doublespeak so fluently used by governments and their press offices.
dou |ble sta nd|ard (double standards ) N‑COUNT If you accuse a person or institution of applying double standards in their treatment of different groups of people, you mean that they unfairly allow more freedom of behaviour to one group than to another. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ Mrs Starky accused the local police of operating double standards.
dou|blet /dʌ bl I t/ (doublets ) N‑COUNT A doublet was a short, tight jacket that was worn by men in the fifteenth, sixteenth, and early seventeenth centuries.
dou ble-ta ke (double-takes ) N‑COUNT If you do a double-take when you see or hear something strange or surprising, you hesitate for a moment before reacting to it because you wonder if you really saw or heard it. □ I did a double-take when I saw her dressed in biker's gear.
dou ble-talk also double talk N‑UNCOUNT If you refer to something someone says as double-talk , you mean that it can deceive people or is difficult to understand because it has two possible meanings.
dou |ble vi |sion N‑UNCOUNT If someone is suffering from double vision , they see a single object as two objects, for example because they are ill or have drunk too much alcohol.
dou|bly /dʌ bli/
1 ADV [ADV with v] You use doubly to indicate that there are two aspects or features that are having an influence on a particular situation. □ The new tax and the drop in house values make homeowners feel doubly penalised.
2 ADV [ADV adj/adv] You use doubly to emphasize that something exists or happens to a greater degree than usual. [EMPHASIS ] □ In pregnancy a high fibre diet is doubly important.
doubt ◆◆◇ /daʊ t/ (doubts , doubting , doubted )
1 N‑VAR [N that] If you have doubt or doubts about something, you feel uncertain about it and do not know whether it is true or possible. If you say you have no doubt about it, you mean that you are certain it is true. □ [+ about/as to ] This raises doubts about the point of advertising. □ I had my doubts when she started, but she's getting really good. □ There can be little doubt that he will offend again.