dupe

1 of 4

noun (1)

ˈdüp How to pronounce dupe (audio)
 also  ˈdyüp
: one that is easily deceived or cheated : fool

dupe

2 of 4

verb (1)

duped; duping

transitive verb

: to deceive or cheat easily : to make a dupe (see dupe entry 1) of
was duped into buying a counterfeit
duper noun

dupe

3 of 4

noun (2)

plural dupes
informal
: duplicate
This new breed of browsing utility programs can also help you organize the pages you've retrieved, eliminating dupes, throwing out unwanted pages, and storing the useful ones in efficient hierarchies of folders.Fortune
"I dropped off the keys … before I left this morning, but I still have a dupe on my key ring."Stephen King

dupe

4 of 4

verb (2)

duped; duping; dupes

transitive + intransitive

informal
: duplicate, copy
dupe a disc
The video quality was degraded by repeated duping.

Examples of dupe in a Sentence

Noun (1) an explanation of how the swindler was able to escape with all of the dupe's money Verb (1) They duped her out of $300. we were duped into thinking the dummy was a real alien Noun (2) he built a dupe of the original model, which is locked in a vault
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Roughly one-third of U.S. adults have intentionally bought a dupe, according to a 2023 Morning Consult study. Annie Palmer,katie Tarasov, CNBC, 25 Oct. 2024 But there were plenty of other great options—including OTC ketoconazole shampoos that experts say are dupes for prescription treatments and exfoliating scalp treatments—that worked very well too. Brigitt Earley, Glamour, 24 Oct. 2024
Verb
Many innocent government workers lost their livelihoods, while others who were eventually exposed as treasonous—including the infamous spy Aldrich Ames—managed to dupe the tests. Susan Saulny, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Oct. 2024 But should partners even be trying to dupe each other? Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week Uk, theweek, 9 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for dupe 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dupe.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1) and Verb (1)

French, from Middle French duppe, probably alteration of huppe hoopoe

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1681, in the meaning defined above

Verb (1)

1704, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

circa 1900, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

1912, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of dupe was in 1681

Dictionary Entries Near dupe

Cite this Entry

“Dupe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dupe. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

dupe

1 of 2 noun
: one who is easily deceived or cheated

dupe

2 of 2 verb
duped; duping
duper noun

More from Merriam-Webster on dupe

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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