COPYCATS Synonyms: 51 Similar and Opposite Words

copycats 1 of 2

noun

plural of copycat

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

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copycats

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of copycat

as in copies

to make an exact likeness of asked her stylist to copycat a hairstyle from the magazine

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of copycats

Noun

Over the past year, a wave of Strategy copycats have stuffed public companies with crypto in a bid to lift their share prices, but that trade has largely lost steam. — Camila Grigera Naón, Fortune, 6 July 2026 Billionaire Michael Saylor developed the playbook at his company, Strategy, which built a stockpile, exploded in value and spawned more than 200 copycats. — Dan Alexander, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026 His pizza is, indeed, extraordinary, particularly the spicy Star Luca with ricotta filling its points, which launched any number of copycats. — Connie Ogle june 30, Miami Herald, 30 June 2026 Apollo’s early-2010s bet on its insurer Athene spawned a decade of copycats, and over the past few years most big alternative asset managers have either bought a life-insurance company or launched dedicated businesses to manage their money. — Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 23 June 2026 The film spawned a host of copycats, but that's not surprising given its incredible success, including an Oscar nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay. — Lauren Huff, Entertainment Weekly, 3 June 2026 John Monaghan, also warning the sewer visitors and their potential copycats. — David K. Li, NBC news, 2 June 2026 Tung Tung Tung Sahur has spawned legions of copycats and spinoffs. — New York Times, 1 June 2026 The copycats aren't the only ones showing up to pay their respects. — Sean Joseph Outkick, FOXNews.com, 18 May 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for copycats

Noun

But the arrival of Buc-ee's supercharged the trend and spawned imitators like Wally's, which has three 50,000-square-foot locations in the Midwest, with plans for more.

— Kevin Williams, CNBC, 2 July 2026
The frontier labs keep shipping the next capability while the imitators are still training on the last one, and the value keeps accruing to whoever is ahead rather than to whoever copied the leader's previous answers.

— Jon Markman, Forbes.com, 26 June 2026

Definition of imitators

Verb

Once inside, the burglar sends in a robotic assistant that races through the rooms, checks drawers, copies keys, locks cabinets and writes a demand note asking for money to unlock the data.

— Ron Schmelzer, Forbes.com, 10 July 2026
In that case, an election official copies a voter's selections from a defective ballot onto a new ballot that can be scanned in the voting machine.

— Angela George, Sioux Falls Argus Leader, 8 July 2026

Definition of copies

Verb

The undulating roofline imitates the Allegheny Mountains, and 38 steel columns create a canopy reminiscent of the region's forests, Prix Versailles says.

— Madeline Bartos, CBS News, 15 June 2026
My mother imitates me, then converts the word into a pair of Korean syllables that sound most like the German.

— Esther Yi, New Yorker, 14 June 2026

Definition of imitates

Noun

Throughout the journey, Pfendler documented life alone at sea for hundreds of thousands of followers on social media, sharing the physical and mental challenges of crossing one of the world's largest oceans.

— Brittany Miller, FOXNews.com, 5 July 2026
His gift for lyrics that were both deeply humane and sharply critical has endured for generations, inspiring followers such as Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen.

— Steve Appleford, Rolling Stone, 4 July 2026

Definition of followers

Verb

Unlike conventional gaming headsets that primarily separate audio into left and right channels, Spherephones reproduces sound from above, below, behind, and in front of the user.

— Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 2 July 2026
The smart glasses come equipped with a proprietary liquid-crystal-on-silicon display that reproduces 16 million colors and offers a 51° field of view.

— Tim Bajarin, Forbes.com, 18 June 2026

Definition of reproduces

Verb

Like many performance EVs attempting to address the absence of combustion-engine noise, Genesis has also developed a bespoke electric Active Sound Design system to create a soundtrack that emulates an ICE vehicle.

— Matthew MacConnell, Forbes.com, 1 June 2026
Virgin with Codex emulates the original painting’s translucent hair.

— Emily Watlington, ARTnews.com, 20 May 2026

Definition of emulates

Noun

From shabby apartments to art experiments to filthy needles—with echoes of Patti Smith and Rebecca Makkai—Adler conjures an era of sorrow borne by too many, too young.

— Hamilton Cain, Time, 7 July 2026
The rural storytelling and fiddle music on the frontier inspired the emergence and growth of commercial country music and bluegrass music, while echoes of acoustic blues and protest songs can be heard in modern R&B and hip-hop.

— Ted Olson, The Conversation, 2 July 2026

Definition of echoes

Verb

This chamber replicates a laboratory setting, showcasing special effects prosthetics, creature designs, makeup concept artwork, and artifacts from historical to contemporary science horror films.

— Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 8 July 2026
The river guides become the architects of a system that replicates their judgment at scale.

— Jack O'Hara, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026

Definition of replicates

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copycat

copycats

copycatted

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Style

“Copycats.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/copycats. Accessed 11 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of copycats

noun

verb

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