imitateim‧i‧tate /ˈɪmɪteɪt/ ●●○ verb [transitive] 
Word Origin Examples
She was a splendid mimic and loved to imitate Winston Churchill. ► Do not use imitate to mean ‘do the same thing as someone else’. Use copy: She worries that Tom will copy his brother (NOT imitate his brother) and leave home.2to copy something because you think it is good: vegetarian products which imitate meat The Japanese have no wish to imitate Western social customs and attitudes.—imitator noun [countable]
Word OriginWORD ORIGINimitate
Verb TableOrigin:
1500-1600 Latin past participle of imitariVERB TABLE
imitate
| Simple Form | ||
| Present | I, you, we, they | imitate |
| he, she, it | imitates | |
| Past | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | imitated |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have imitated |
| he, she, it | has imitated | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had imitated |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will imitate |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have imitated |
| Continuous Form | ||
| Present | I | am imitating |
| he, she, it | is imitating | |
| you, we, they | are imitating | |
| Past | I, he, she, it | was imitating |
| you, we, they | were imitating | |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have been imitating |
| he, she, it | has been imitating | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had been imitating |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will be imitating |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have been imitating |
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
Thesaurus- "Don't you talk to me like that!" she said imitating her mother's high-pitched voice.
- A lot of writers have tried to imitate Lawrence's style.
- He has a unique ability to imitate any sound he has heard.
- Our methods have been imitated all over the world.
- She's really good at imitating our teacher's Scottish accent.
- An animal acquires the behaviour pattern by imitating it from another.
- And a clear case of life imitating astrology.
- I had the ability to imitate.
- It was as if the ecology of the place had chosen to imitate politics.
- They respond in sympathy to what she is doing and imitate her movements.
- They still resent the deep disappointment that has followed attempts to imitate the West.
- We imitated the styles of Conrad, Hemingway, and Time magazine.
Longman Language Activatorto do the same as someone else does► copy
Collocations to do the same things that someone else does, especially in order to look like them or be like them: · Children learn swearing from copying their parents and siblings.· Martin often claimed he copied Bing Crosby's singing style, but there was much more to his music than that.
► imitate to copy the way someone behaves, speaks, writes, or moves, especially because you admire them or want to be like them: · "Don't you talk to me like that!" she said imitating her mother's high-pitched voice.· A lot of writers have tried to imitate Lawrence's style.
► impersonate to pretend to be someone else by copying the way they talk, walk, dress etc, especially in order to make people think you are really the other person: · Harmon is charged with impersonating a police officer.· She makes a living out of impersonating Tina Turner in shows and films.
► ape to imitate someone's behaviour, in a way that other people think is stupid or silly: · His music attempts to ape classical styles, but the results are not very original.· California wine makers are trying to do new things with Sauvignon blanc instead of just aping French styles.
► do what somebody does informal to do the same things as someone else, especially in order to learn from them: · Just watch and do what I do. It's pretty easy.
► follow somebody's example to copy what someone else has done because you think that their behaviour or actions were a good idea: · Brian persuaded his brothers to follow his example and join the navy.· Following the example of Nixon, a politician he greatly admired, he decided to try to make himself more appealing to voters.
► follow in somebody's footsteps to do something that someone else has done before you, especially someone in a more powerful position than you: · My father was always disappointed that Joey didn't follow in his footsteps and take over the farm.· We will watch with interest what happens to these two women officers and to the young women who wish to follow in their footsteps.
► follow suit/follow somebody's lead to do what someone else has just done because it seems the correct thing to do: · We're hoping that Europe will follow the US's lead and ban all use of these poisonous gases.· Because the Black community has long experience with civil rights issues, other minority groups may follow its lead.· Other oil companies are expected to follow suit and raise prices before the end of the month.
to copy someone or something to make people laugh► imitate to copy what someone says or does, in order to make people laugh: · She's really good at imitating our teacher's Scottish accent.
► do an impression/imitation to copy the way someone famous moves, talks etc, in order to make people laugh: · He made her laugh hysterically during their walks, with his impression of Gene Kelly doing "Singin' in the Rain.''
► mimic to unkindly copy the way someone talks or moves in order to make people laugh: · "Hmm," Phil said. "Hmm," Graham mimicked.· Yolanda mimicked their father opening the letter.
► a take-off of somebody/something also a take-off on somebody/something American informal a copy of the way someone moves or talks, or of the style of a movie, book, etc that is done to make people laugh: · A local television reporter dubbed him StyroCop - a take-off on the movie "RoboCop'' .do a take-off of/on somebody: · Karen can do a hilarious take-off of Bette Davis.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSNOUN► child
1to copy the way someone behaves, speaks, moves etc, especially in order to make people laugh: · The children imitated the bird's behaviour, arms outstretched.· Such children imitate what they see but do not yet reason like their older playmates.
► life· And a clear case of life imitating astrology.· When you have that taking place, not only do you have art imitating life, but you have life imitating art.· This is where it was life imitating art imitating life.· She had also been taught, when in difficulty, to think of a good life to imitate.
► sound· Smiling, recognising, swiping, grabbing, balancing on his bottom, eating, imitating sounds, crawling, standing.· Many of the stringed instruments imitate the sounds of horses; wind instruments imitate the sounds of birds and other wild animals.· Parrots have an advantage over and above chimpanzees in that they can, of course, imitate human sounds.· Many of the stringed instruments imitate the sounds of horses; wind instruments imitate the sounds of birds and other wild animals.· Dolphins have a remarkable capacity for vocal mimicry, and they learn to imitate sounds very accurately and quickly.
► style· Like many dance directors he imitated the Tiller style and by undercutting could offer some work.· We imitated the styles of Conrad, Hemingway, and Time magazine.· Sports heroes and pop stars provide images for teenagers, who may imitate them and style themselves upon them.
VERB► try· His eyes seemed to be trying to imitate a lizard and swivel in opposite directions.· I tried to imitate it but I couldn't do it.· What am I trying to do, imitate twenty-two-year-olds?· I guessed he was trying to imitate the movements of a skier.· And to try to imitate that is the biggest mistake in the world.
She was a splendid mimic and loved to imitate Winston Churchill. ► Do not use imitate to mean ‘do the same thing as someone else’. Use copy: She worries that Tom will copy his brother (NOT imitate his brother) and leave home.2to copy something because you think it is good: vegetarian products which imitate meat The Japanese have no wish to imitate Western social customs and attitudes.—imitator noun [countable]