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View synonyms for

imitate

[im-i-teyt]

verb (used with object)

imitated, imitating 
  1. to follow or endeavor to follow as a model or example.

    to imitate an author's style; to imitate an older brother.

  2. to mimic; impersonate.

    The students imitated the teacher behind her back.

    Synonyms: ,
  3. to make a copy of; reproduce closely.

  4. to have or assume the appearance of; simulate; resemble.



imitate

/ ˈɪɪˌٱɪ /

verb

  1. to try to follow the manner, style, character, etc, of or take as a model

    many writers imitated the language of Shakespeare

  2. to pretend to be or to impersonate, esp for humour; mimic

  3. to make a copy or reproduction of; duplicate; counterfeit

  4. to make or be like; resemble or simulate

    her achievements in politics imitated her earlier successes in business

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Other Word Forms

  • imitator noun
  • nonimitating adjective
  • overimitate verb (used with object)
  • preimitate verb (used with object)
  • unimitated adjective
  • unimitating adjective
  • well-imitated adjective
  • ˌٲˈٲ noun
  • ˈˌٲٴǰ noun
  • ˈٲ adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of imitate1

First recorded in 1525–35; from Latin ٳܲ, past participle of ī “to copy,” presumably a frequentative akin to the base of 岵ō image
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Word History and Origins

Origin of imitate1

C16: from Latin ī; see image
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Synonym Study

Imitate, copy, duplicate, reproduce all mean to follow or try to follow an example or pattern. Imitate is the general word for the idea: to imitate someone's handwriting, behavior. To copy is to make a fairly exact imitation of an original creation: to copy a sentence, a dress, a picture. To duplicate is to produce something that exactly resembles or corresponds to something else; both may be originals: to duplicate the terms of two contracts. To reproduce is to make a likeness or reconstruction of an original: to reproduce a 16th-century theater.
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Escola went from recording videos on a webcam to accepting the Tony for best actor; from imitating a legend to becoming one in their own right.

From

“In middle school, I had a social and comedic disadvantage because many of my friends knew all of Chespirito’s jokes and imitated the characters’ voices, and I couldn’t follow along,” Cruz Guerrero says.

From

Phishing is when criminals use personal information gathered externally to imitate a person and access services.

From

Life imitating art in the creepiest way possible.

From

Those voters are the equivalent of Robin Williams imitating a six-year-old sticking their tongue out and hissing, “I know you are but what am I?”

From

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