wannabe

noun

wan·​na·​be ˈwä-nə-ˌbē 

variants or less commonly wannabee

1

: a person who wants or aspires to be someone or something else or who tries to look or act like someone else

2

: something (such as a company, city, or product) intended to rival another of its kind that has been successful

especially : one for which hopes have failed or are likely to fail

Synonyms

• aper
• copycat
• copyist
• echo
• follower
• imitator
• rubber stamp

Examples of wannabe in a Sentence

an entrepreneur who seems to have made his fortune mainly by giving how-to-get-rich lectures to entrepreneurial wannabes

Recent Examples on the Web

There’s a reason uptight parents of the ’80s were less than thrilled at the thought of their preteen daughters being wannabes, as Madonna fans were labeled in the media. —Ed Masley, The Arizona Republic, 10 Mar. 2024

By contrast, the Silicon wannabes tend to put all their eggs in one basket, and when that basket’s contents spill out, there’s little to fill it up again. —Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 29 Feb. 2024

Other marques include premium wannabes Alfa Romeo and DS, and the iconic Italian luxury-sports car maker Maserati. —Neil Winton, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2024

In short, the taglines must capture the ineffable, ridiculously over-the-top essence of the socialites (and socialite wannabes) who utter them. —Kristen Baldwin, EW.com, 10 July 2023

Call it a banana republic run by dictator wannabes. —Linda Robertson, Miami Herald, 20 Dec. 2023

Atkins would be an intriguing, worthwhile addition to the mix of gubernatorial wannabes. —George Skelton, Los Angeles Times, 7 Dec. 2023

Yeoh plays Mama Sun, who is estranged from the father of her older son Charles (Chien) — a handsome killer — and her younger son Bruce (Sam Song Li) — a confrontation-adverse improv wannabe. —Randy Myers, Hartford Courant, 14 Jan. 2024

These are just the mere statistics, the number-crunching, but what fuels the man now ranked No. 1 for a record eighth time is the idea of constant self-improvement, as well as keeping the lid on the wannabes. —Tim Ellis, Forbes, 13 Nov. 2023

Word History

Etymology

from the phrase want to be

First Known Use

1976, in the meaning defined at sense 1