What is the past tense of this phrasal verb (double down)?

Question

Blackjack players can "double down" after receiving their initial two cards.

What is the past tense of 'Double Down'?

Answer 1

Double down is an idiomatic phrase which is also a phrasal verb. Phrasal verbs are defined as follows:

A phrasal verb contains either a preposition or an adverb (or both), and may also combine with one or more nouns or pronouns.

There are three main types of these phrasal verbs, depending on what the phrase contains. The types are:

1. Participle verbs: Phrasal verbs that contain a particle such as up (for example switch off, look up). So, they are formed as: verb + participle

2. Prepositional verbs: Prepositional verbs are phrasal verbs that contain a preposition, which is always followed by its nominal object (for example look after, talk to...about). So, they are verb + preposition

3. Phrasal-prepositional verbs: A phrasal verb can contain an adverb and a preposition at the same time (for example got off to, put down to).

In order to form the past tense of any of the phrasal verbs, one must put the verb into the past tense. For example:

present: I look after my little sister.

past: I looked after my little sister.

The phrase double down can be broken into the verb double plus the preposition down, so it is a prepositional verb phrase. The past tense of "double" is "doubled", so the past tense you're asking for would be doubled down.

A similar example of creating this past tense is double over--you would say that someone doubled over in pain, but not doubled overed or doubled overed.

Answer 2

Common usage is doubled down. Some examples (mostly not related to blackjack, but using the term in a figurative sense):

• "Bachmann doubled-down, citing as her only proof the abolitionist John Quincy Adams." (New York Times)
• "When the GOP doubled down on crazy" (Salon)
• "If a player chooses to rescue their doubled down bet, he forfeits his original wager and is removed from the hand." (blackjacktactics.com)