/sim'yeuh lay"sheuhn/ , n.
1. imitation or enactment, as of something anticipated or in testing.
2. the act or process of pretending; feigning.
3. an assumption or imitation of a particular appearance or form; counterfeit; sham.
4. Psychiatry. a conscious attempt to feign some mental or physical disorder to escape punishment or to gain a desired objective.
5. the representation of the behavior or characteristics of one system through the use of another system, esp. a computer program designed for the purpose.
[ 1300-50; ME simulacion simulation- (s. of simulatio ) a pretense. See SIMULATE, -ION ]