deuce

noun

1. Cards. a card having two pips; a two, or two-spot.
2. Dice.
   1. the face of a die having two pips.
   2. a cast or point of two.
3. Tennis. a situation, as a score of 40–40 in a game or 5–5 in a match, in which a player must score two successive points to win the game or two successive games to win the set.
4. Slang.
   1. a two-dollar bill.
   2. the sum of two dollars.

adjective

5. (especially in games, sports, and gambling) two.

noun

1. devil; dickens (used as a mild oath): Where the deuce did they hide it?

noun

1. 1. a playing card or dice with two pips or spots; two
   2. a throw of two in dice
2. tennis a tied score (in tennis 40-all) that requires one player to gain two successive points to win the game

interjection

1. an expression of annoyance or frustration

noun

2. the deuce (intensifier) used in such phrases as what the deuce, where the deuce, etc

n.

late 15c., “the 2 in dice or cards,” also “a roll of 2 in dice” (1510s), from Middle French deus (Modern French deux), from Latin duos (nominative duo) “two” (see two).

Became a mild oath by 1710, about 50 years after it was first attested in the sense of “bad luck, the devil, etc.,” perhaps because two was the lowest score, and probably by similarity to Latin deus and related words meaning “god.” Low German had der daus! in same sense 16c., which perhaps influenced the English form. Deuce coupe is 1940s hot-rodder slang for “souped up two-door car,” especially a 1932 Ford. Related: Deuced; deucedly.