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

Additionally, the suit claims that in 2024, hackers created a Gmail account and domain name impersonating a photographer to get a digital technician to send unreleased photos that belonged to Grande. — Steven J. Horowitz, Variety, 28 July 2026

The hackers created a Gmail account and internet domain impersonating the photographer and tricked the technician into sending Grande’s materials to them, the singer claims. — Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 27 July 2026

Phone conversations, text messages, and even scrolling through personal photos can reveal enough information for someone to impersonate you or launch a convincing phishing attack later. — Stefanie Waldek, Travel + Leisure, 26 July 2026

Bad actors can impersonate legitimate business phone numbers at scale, posing serious financial and reputational risks to enterprises. — Scott Hambuchen, Forbes.com, 23 July 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