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
-
For decades, Gallup’s company and its imitators improved their techniques.—
David Frum,
The Atlantic,
21 Feb. 2026
-
Along the way, the festival has outlasted many imitators and weathered shifting food trends by staying nimble.—
Peter Burke,
FOXNews.com,
21 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
By practicing on a model that copies heart circulation and contraction, doctors can improve their technique for complex valve repairs before surgery.—
Munis Raza,
Interesting Engineering,
5 Mar. 2026
-
From about 2011 to 2014, Gates emails Epstein directly, and often one of the pair copies Cohen or Nikolic.—
Erin Mansfield,
USA Today,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Whether or not life imitates art remains to be seen.—
Andrew Paul,
Popular Science,
19 Mar. 2026
-
Patagonia’s proprietary synthetic fill imitates down’s structure by spinning air-trapping microfilaments around a central fiber and requires fewer stabilizing seams and baffles than down.—
Kelly Bastone,
Outside,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
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That makes sense, given she's used to broadcasting snippets of her life to her more than 7 million TikTok followers and nearly 4 million on Instagram.—
David Oliver,
USA Today,
1 Apr. 2026
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Lifestyle influencer and DadToker Mortensen has become a social media influencer, with about 830,000 followers on TikTok and 290,000 followers on Instagram.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The new simulator reproduces galactic cosmic rays using ion accelerators, giving researchers a powerful tool to study radiation exposure in deep space.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
13 Mar. 2026
-
The nuance and presence that the Nova Elite's carbon fiber reproduces across the full frequency range are noticeably better than those of the Nova Pro Wireless, which already sounds great.—
Will Greenwald,
PC Magazine,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
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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
-
Meanwhile, anyone online can browse Epstein’s correspondence on Jmail, a site that emulates the experience of browsing his Gmail inbox.—
Kyle Chayka,
New Yorker,
11 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The drone also incorporates an acoustic shield to dampen noise from its own propellers, enabling clearer detection of echoes.—
Jijo Malayil,
Interesting Engineering,
27 Mar. 2026
-
There were also subtle echoes to Alessandro Michele’s influence throughout—a welcome nod from Demna, one that bridges past and present while setting the tone for the next Gucci chapter.—
Laura Jackson,
Vogue,
25 Mar. 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
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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 2 Apr. 2026.
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