im ‧ i ‧ tate /ˈɪməteɪt, ˈɪmɪteɪt/ BrE AmE verb [transitive]
[ Date: 1500-1600 ; Language: Latin ; Origin: past participle of imitari ]
1 . to copy the way someone behaves, speaks, moves etc, especially in order to make people laugh:
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.
2 . to 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]