evil twin

English

Etymology

From evil and twin.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈiːvɪl twɪn/, /ˈiːvl̩ twɪn/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈivl̩ twɪn/

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

Noun

evil twin (plural evil twins)

1. (idiomatic) A duplicate or counterpart that acts in a contrary, nefarious, or insidious manner.

   As a ploy to discredit the reformist politician, the opposing party had hired a lookalike to act as his evil twin and be seen in a variety of compromising situations.

   • 2003, Peter Halstead, Sea Sun‎^[1]:

     ...we see the flip side, the evil twin, the dark side of addition. Human nature contains both a thing and its opposite in varying degrees of tension, and so for every plus there is a minus.

   • 2004, Bob Sullivan, Your Evil Twin: Behind the Identity Theft Epidemic‎^[2]:

     ...[he]..lived his life under [another man's name], becoming his evil twin: Staas bought and sold homes, opened bank accounts, obtained credit, married twice, and was arrested at least three times.

2. (networking) A rogue wireless access point installed near a legitimate one for purposes of eavesdropping or phishing.

Synonyms

• (duplicate of contrary or nefarious intent): alter ego, changeling, doppelganger

Translations

duplicate or counterpart

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 邪恶分身 (xié'è fēnshēn)

• French: double maléfique (fr) m
• Hungarian: gonosz ikertestvér