Phrase Meaning – ‘Were Identical to the Last Freckle’ in Context

phrase-meaning

Aunt Petunia shrieked and fell backward over the coffee table; Uncle Vernon caught her before she hit the floor, and gaped, speechless, at the Weasleys, all of whom had bright red hair, including Fred and George, who were identical to the last freckle.

As I understand, "A is identical to B" means A and B are the same. But in this context, the phrase seems to be used in a different way. It sounds like it conveys both Fred and George were exactly identical (from the first) to the last freckle. Is my understanding correct?

Best Answer

Yup, it means every single one of their freckles is the same, along with everything else.

"to the last _____" is often used with something small or insignificant, to convey the idea that even if you checked rigorously every single detail, up to the smallest one, the affirmation would still hold.

Eg. :

He cleaned the house to the last speck of dust

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