English Reference

Word

imitating

Phoneticsim·i·tat·ing

US/ˈɪməˌteɪtɪŋ/

UK/ˈɪmɪtˌeɪtɪŋ/

Definition

adj. copying the way someone else speaks, moves, or behaves. You use this to describe someone who is trying to look or act like another person or thing.

adj. copying the actions, appearance, or speech of another person or entity. Often used as a participial adjective to describe a subject engaged in mimicry.

Examples

“The child is imitating his father's walk.”

“The young comedian became famous for imitating the voices of several well-known politicians.”

“By imitating the complex songs of other birds, the mockingbird can effectively defend its territory from a wide variety of potential competitors.”

Examples

simple

“The child is imitating his father's walk.”

contextual

“The young comedian became famous for imitating the voices of several well-known politicians.”

complex

“By imitating the complex songs of other birds, the mockingbird can effectively defend its territory from a wide variety of potential competitors.”

Usage

Often functions as a participial adjective following a linking verb or as part of a continuous verb construction.

Real-World Examples

“The future of customer service AI may not be about imitating humans as closely as possible.”
Phys.org · 2 Sept 2026

This entry

Level
B2 · Upper Intermediate
Frequency
Frequent
Updated

Scan code

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English Reference