as in imitators
a person who adopts the appearance or behavior of another especially in an obvious way
every rock singer who makes it big soon has a whole cluster of copycats
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in copies
to make an exact likeness of
asked her stylist to copycat a hairstyle from the magazine
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in imitates
to use (someone or something) as the model for one's speech, mannerisms, or behavior
a performer who slavishly copycats another never rises to the level of true stardom
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of copycats
Danielle Paquette, Washington Post, 28 Mar. 2026
And just as Elon Musk’s initial moonshot package spawned a whole class of copycats (including Musk’s more recent $1 trillion plan), Ferracone expects other tech companies to mimic Meta’s latest move.
—Claire Zillman, Fortune, 28 Mar. 2026
Tropes, sequels, and even shameless copycats gave me a way to compare craft without getting overwhelmed by just how much movies can mean to me personally.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 27 Mar. 2026
But now that the drugs are no longer in short supply, compounders can no longer legally make copycats, and the FDA is cracking down on the dupes.
—Tom Gavin, EverydayHealth.com, 13 Mar. 2026
There are so many copycats, especially with this.
—Preezy Brown, Rolling Stone, 24 Feb. 2026
Concerns about the incident and possible copycats have spread across the area.
—John Dias, CBS News, 17 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, in the compounding market, the share of copycats for Novo's drug far outweighs that of Lilly's.
—Annika Kim Constantino,elsa Ohlen, CNBC, 11 Feb. 2026
The copycats in the lower leagues can’t rely on that, and the football has become distinctly more old-school, with many more headers per game than, say, five years ago.
—Michael Cox, New York Times, 11 Feb. 2026
Noun
Other internet critics slammed his great-uncle’s creation as touristy, insisting diners could find tastier versions among the legion of copycats.
—Danielle Paquette, Washington Post, 28 Mar. 2026
And just as Elon Musk’s initial moonshot package spawned a whole class of copycats (including Musk’s more recent $1 trillion plan), Ferracone expects other tech companies to mimic Meta’s latest move.
—Claire Zillman, Fortune, 28 Mar. 2026
Tropes, sequels, and even shameless copycats gave me a way to compare craft without getting overwhelmed by just how much movies can mean to me personally.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 27 Mar. 2026
But now that the drugs are no longer in short supply, compounders can no longer legally make copycats, and the FDA is cracking down on the dupes.
—Tom Gavin, EverydayHealth.com, 13 Mar. 2026
There are so many copycats, especially with this.
—Preezy Brown, Rolling Stone, 24 Feb. 2026
Concerns about the incident and possible copycats have spread across the area.
—John Dias, CBS News, 17 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, in the compounding market, the share of copycats for Novo's drug far outweighs that of Lilly's.
—Annika Kim Constantino,elsa Ohlen, CNBC, 11 Feb. 2026
The copycats in the lower leagues can’t rely on that, and the football has become distinctly more old-school, with many more headers per game than, say, five years ago.
—Michael Cox, New York Times, 11 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for copycats
Noun
-
Swimbaits, stick baits, creature baits, crawfish imitators, and big ribbontail worms will all catch fish on a Texas rig.—
Derek Horner,
Outdoor Life,
2 Apr. 2026
-
For decades, Gallup’s company and its imitators improved their techniques.—
David Frum,
The Atlantic,
21 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
On a party count, that is 4-3 for the Dems and the one-for-you, one-for-me bipartisan staffing copies the Board of Elections.—
New York Daily News Editorial Board,
New York Daily News,
30 Mar. 2026
-
Every time the virus copies itself inside a cell, its genetic material mutates.—
Kyle B. Enfield,
The Conversation,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Aristotle said that art imitates nature (ars imitatur naturam), and for centuries, many artists sought to imitate their subjects as realistically as possible.—
Andrey Mir,
Big Think,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Whether or not life imitates art remains to be seen.—
Andrew Paul,
Popular Science,
19 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Despite a massive group of followers cascading down and surrounding the royal couple, one beachgoer went viral after she couldn't be bothered to dismiss the UV index for the day.—
Tracy Wright,
FOXNews.com,
21 Apr. 2026
-
Reese Witherspoon went viral last week — nearly five million views on Instagram and countless more when her comments were shared across platforms — for suggesting that her followers embrace and learn how to use artificial intelligence.—
Chris Gardner,
HollywoodReporter,
21 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
An editor is not just someone who mechanically reproduces a number of steps.—
Cerys Davies,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Apr. 2026
-
The system reproduces fusion-relevant magnetic conditions at a full tokamak configuration level, offering a platform to test magnet behavior under realistic conditions.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
14 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Following film was a full run on the team’s NBA floor rather than the practice facility, which better emulates a game feel.—
Jace Frederick,
Twin Cities,
14 Apr. 2026
-
Instead, the site recommends a homemade mixture consisting of four parts water to one part sugar, which emulates the amount of sugar naturally found in nectar.—
Cheyenne Derksen,
Oklahoman,
22 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Thousands took to the streets, and police responded by using rubber bullets, tear gas, and water cannons to disperse the protests, in a show of force that carried echoes of 1956.—
Isaac Stanley-Becker,
The Atlantic,
10 Apr. 2026
-
But travel through this stretch of the West Coast on the trail of the American writer and there are echoes of his world all around you.—
Alexandra Genova,
TheWeek,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Lerner gets plentiful mileage out of his novel’s title, which also connotes the transmission of culture (thought or speech to writing, sound to vinyl) or part of the process whereby DNA replicates.—
Hannah Gold,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Mar. 2026
-
Researchers at the University of Bristol have created a network of simple mechanical motors that replicates how human muscles respond to increasing load.—
Jijo Malayil,
Interesting Engineering,
22 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Copycats.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/copycats. Accessed 22 Apr. 2026.
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