imitate

verb

im·​i·​tate ˈi-mə-ˌtāt 

imitated; imitating

transitive verb

1

: to follow as a pattern, model, or example

2

: mimic, counterfeit

can imitate his father's booming voice

3

: to be or appear like : resemble

4

: to produce a copy of : reproduce

imitator

ˈi-mə-ˌtā-tər 

noun

Synonyms

• emulate
• copy
• mimic

Choose the Right Synonym for imitate

copy, imitate, mimic, ape, mock mean to make something so that it resembles an existing thing.

copy suggests duplicating an original as nearly as possible.

copied the painting and sold the fake as an original

imitate suggests following a model or a pattern but may allow for some variation.

imitate a poet's style

mimic implies a close copying (as of voice or mannerism) often for fun, ridicule, or lifelike imitation.

pupils mimicking their teacher

ape may suggest presumptuous, unoriginal, or inept imitating of a superior original.

American fashion designers aped their European colleagues

mock usually implies imitation with derision.

mocking a vain man's pompous manner

Examples of imitate in a Sentence

Her style has been imitated by many other writers.

He's very good at imitating his father's voice.

She can imitate the calls of many different birds.

Recent Examples on the Web

Perhaps, but no machine can imitate my imagination or the memories that pour through me, or feel the fear of extinguishment. —Adam Verner september 3, Literary Hub, 3 Sep. 2025

Sometimes art imitates life by skipping a generation. —Lisa Respers France, CNN Money, 2 Sep. 2025

Van Sant’s movie was in the works and started shooting before that happened but feels like art imitating life both past and present, as this story was actually set in 1977 and based on a true incident that became quite infamous at the time. —Pete Hammond, Deadline, 2 Sep. 2025

And then third, Nixon, who had lost to Kennedy in the 1960 election, by the early 1970s, as president, was not about to ape and imitate the man who had bested him. —Brian Domitrovic, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Latin imitātus, past participle of imitārī "to follow as a pattern, copy," frequentative derivative of a presumed verb *imā- "make a copy," perhaps going back to Indo-European *h₂im-, whence also Hittite hima-, himma- "substitute, replica, toy"

Note: Aside from Hittite, evidence for an etymon *h₂im- is lacking. See also etymology and note at emulous.

First Known Use

1534, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for imitate

• abdicate
• abrogate
• acetate
• activate
• actuate
• adsorbate
• aggravate
• agitate
• alginate
• alienate
• allocate
• amputate

Kids Definition

imitate

verb

im·​i·​tate ˈim-ə-ˌtāt 

imitated; imitating

1

: to follow as a pattern, model, or example

2

: to be or appear similar to

3

: to copy exactly

imitator

-ˌtāt-ər 

noun