spitting image
English
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spitting image
- /ˈspɪtɪŋ ˈɪmɪdʒ/ UK
Where it comes from
An alteration of the earlier spitten image (see spitten). A popular folk etymology explains this phrase as deriving from the idea of a father spitting out a child whole from his mouth, as if giving birth. However, spitten image actually developed from spit and image, where spit in this context means “likeness”. Terban further suggests a derivation of this sense of spit from the word spirit, but evidence for this is lacking. Another theory is that the idiom is Biblical, after an image of God spitting into dry earth to make the clay out of which Adam would be formed.
noun spitting images
- The exact likeness (of someone); a speaking or living image. You're the spitting image of my brother.
Translations
Every language
noun the exact likeness of someone
| Español | el vivo retrato, la viva imagen, la viva estampa, clavadito |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | そっくり sokkuri, クリソツ kurisotsu |
| 中文 | 一模一样 yīmóyīyàng, 活像 huóxiàng |
| Português | cuspido e escarrado |
| Français | portrait craché |
| Deutsch | Ebenbild |
| Italiano | spaccato, tale e quale |
| Русский | вы́литый výlityj, вы́литый портре́т výlityj portrét, то́чная ко́пия tóčnaja kópija |
Talk about this word "spitting image." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/spitting%20image. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. spitting image. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/spitting%20image "spitting image." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/spitting%20image.Cite this
@misc{spitting_image_2026,
title = {spitting image},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/spitting%20image},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
