impersonate

verb

im·​per·​son·​ate im-ˈpər-sə-ˌnāt 

impersonated; impersonating

transitive verb

: to assume or act the character of : personate

impersonating a police officer

impersonation

im-ˌpər-sə-ˈnā-shən 

noun

Synonyms of impersonate

• imitate
• mock
• play
• portray
• personate
• pose (as)
• masquerade (as)

Examples of impersonate in a Sentence

He was arrested for impersonating a police officer.

a comedian with a talent for impersonating famous politicians and actors

Recent Examples on the Web

Today, those same artifacts can be fabricated with startling accuracy and used to impersonate leaders, distort events or trigger reactions before facts are verified. — Deepa Nagraj, Forbes.com, 6 Aug. 2026

Officials in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, are warning about scammers who are impersonating local officials to get money from residents. — Laura Fay, CBS News, 5 Aug. 2026

CyberGuy has also explained how scammers impersonate water and other utility companies by spoofing familiar phone numbers. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 4 Aug. 2026

The speed and accuracy in which scammers are able to impersonate OnlyFans stars not only chips away at the creator’s income but can have offline consequences for both the creators and their fans. — Alyssa Goldberg, USA Today, 3 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1715, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for impersonate

• abbreviate
• accelerate
• accommodate
• accumulate
• acuminate
• adjudicate
• adulterate
• affiliate
• agglomerate
• agglutinate
• alleviate
• amalgamate

Kids Definition

impersonate

verb

im·​per·​son·​ate im-ˈpərs-ᵊn-ˌāt 

impersonated; impersonating

: to pretend to be some other person

impersonate a police officer

impersonation

-ˌpərs-ᵊn-ˈā-shən

noun

impersonator

-ˈpərs-ᵊn-ˌāt-ər

noun

Legal Definition

impersonate

transitive verb

im·​per·​son·​ate im-ˈpər-sə-ˌnāt 

impersonated; impersonating

: to assume (another's or a fictitious identity) without authority and with fraudulent intent

impersonate a police officer

impersonated a public servant by saying he was from the water department

impersonator

-ˌnā-tər 

noun