copycat

noun, often attributive

copy·cat | \ ˈkä-pē-ˌkat

How to pronounce copycat (audio)

\

Definition of copycat

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : one who imitates or adopts the behavior or practices of another

2 : an imitative act or product copycat board games

copycat

copycatted; copycatting

Definition of copycat (Entry 2 of 2)

intransitive verb

: to act as a copycat

transitive verb

Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about copycat

Keep scrolling for more

Examples of copycat in a Sentence

Noun She called me a copycat for wearing the same dress. every rock singer who makes it big soon has a whole cluster of copycats Verb asked her stylist to copycat a hairstyle from the magazine a performer who slavishly copycats another never rises to the level of true stardom

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Ohio Gun Owners is a copycat of similar groups the founder’s family started in other states. — Laura Hancock, cleveland, "Some Ohio coronavirus protesters using anti-Semitic symbolism," 19 Apr. 2020 The corporation explains that many copycat recipes have been popping up over the years, but this is the first time Hilton has released the official one. — Jennifer Aldrich, Better Homes & Gardens, "DoubleTree Just Shared the Recipe for Its Famous Chocolate Chip Cookies," 13 Apr. 2020 Or at least that was how misinformed copycats understood it. — Jon Blau, Indianapolis Star, "IU football: New defensive line coach Kevin Peoples represents impressive coaching tree," 6 May 2020 Listed for $299, this copycat was $200 cheaper than a real Doona. — Pamela Boykoff And Clare Sebastian, CNN, "Fake and dangerous kids products are turning up for sale on Amazon," 20 Dec. 2019 Like other sellers of secondhand merchandise, RealReal gets almost no help from brands in identifying genuine products from copycats. — Suzanne Kapner, WSJ, "RealReal’s Biggest Hurdle Will Be Keeping It Real After IPO," 25 June 2019 His symbiosis with synthesizers is remarkable, and his production is still fresh today, despite the numerous copycats that have since proliferated. — Nick Williams, Billboard, "Listen to Bruno Major's TBT Mixtape, Inspired by DMT, Fantasia and More," 13 Feb. 2020 If Apple can sell people on Arcade, expect copycats. — Los Angeles Times, "News Analysis: Apple’s Arcade video game service seeks to upend another business model," 13 Sep. 2019 Coltrane, by contrast, inspired legions of copycats—Golia focuses on Coleman’s ceaseless drive to transcend the disciplinary borders laid down by the jazz modernists. — Julian Lucas, Harper's Magazine, "New Books," 30 Mar. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb In the aftermath of the attack, some in El Paso feared that copycat anti-Latino shootings would strike the city. — Erin Coulehan, New York Times, "Federal Hate Crime Charges Filed in El Paso Shooting That Targeted Latinos," 6 Feb. 2020 Fangio believes other teams are going to copycat Jacksonville’s gameplan for rushing success, one that Chargers coach Anthony Lynn knows begins with neutralizing the best Broncos player left on the field in the wake of Chubb’s injury. — Kyle Newman, The Denver Post, "Broncos run defense is trending in the wrong direction ahead of road test against the Chargers’ talented backfield," 4 Oct. 2019 The company responded to copycat complaints by pointing to a common beauty industry practice known as dupes — cheaper, comparable alternatives to more expensive makeup. — Harmeet Kaur, CNN, "James Charles accuses Wet n Wild of copying his eyeshadow palette," 7 Sep. 2019 Soon after premiering, the show faced some backlash regarding its depiction of suicide, with a number of activists and health professionals voicing concerns that the scene may have contributed to copycat suicides among teens. — NBC News, "'13 Reasons Why' edits controversial suicide scene," 16 July 2019 So the introduction of Facebook's new cryptocurrency next year—and perhaps copycat efforts down the road—could bolster bitcoin's value. — Timothy B. Lee, Ars Technica, "Bitcoin rises above $10,000 for the first time in a year," 21 June 2019 The Kardashian-Jenners are no strangers to copycat controversy. — Zoë Weiner, Teen Vogue, "People Accuse Kim Kardashian of Copying Urban Decay With Her KKW Beauty Cherry Blossom Collection," 12 Sep. 2018 Wentz’s impact is obvious, and Roseman’s moves influenced the Bears to copycat him with a similarly heavy commitment to the position a year later (bringing in Mike Glennon, Mark Sanchez and then Mitch Trubisky). — Albert Breer, SI.com, "Cleveland Browns Won’t Be Starting From Scratch in Evaluating the Draft’s Top Quarterbacks," 25 Jan. 2018 Now that the company is public, however, all eyes are on Snap to show huge growth, especially as Facebook’s (fb, +0.23%) competing Instagram service consistently debuts copycat features and tries to steal users. — Jonathan Vanian, Fortune, "After Rocky Year, CEO Evan Spiegel Is Still Happy Snap Went Public," 16 Feb. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'copycat.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about copycat

Dictionary Entries near copycat

Statistics for copycat

Last Updated

31 May 2020

Cite this Entry

“Copycat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/copycat. Accessed 4 Jun. 2020.

Keep scrolling for more

Keep scrolling for more

WORD OF THE DAY

posture

See Definitions and Examples »

Test Your Vocabulary

May 2020 Words of the Day Quiz

Which is a synonym of exiguous?

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.