1
as in imitation
using or marked by the use of something else as a basis or model
your writing style tends to be imitative of whichever author you've recently read
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in synthetic
being such in appearance only and made with or manufactured from usually cheaper materials
an imitative extract never has the flavor of the real thing
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of imitative
Conversations in dorm rooms and lecture halls consist of roughly 97% university-loathing and imitative protests to fire coaches and athletic directors.
—
Noah White, Miami Herald, 30 Sep. 2025
Third-party imitative learning from an immigrating parrot’s flockmates may facilitate overall group integration and social bonding and may even give rise to cultural conventions of coordinated movements or gestures.
—Grrlscientist, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
In Roeck’s picture, competitive, rather than imitative, habits of mind rose from religious warfare, establishing a cutthroat system of cultural and economic innovation which lasts to this day.
—Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 28 July 2025
Nautilus is bold in its changes to Captain Nemo’s story — new monsters, new villains — but imitative to other genre series in execution, and the vibe is a little didactic.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 25 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for imitative
Noah White, Miami Herald, 30 Sep. 2025
Third-party imitative learning from an immigrating parrot’s flockmates may facilitate overall group integration and social bonding and may even give rise to cultural conventions of coordinated movements or gestures.
—Grrlscientist, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
In Roeck’s picture, competitive, rather than imitative, habits of mind rose from religious warfare, establishing a cutthroat system of cultural and economic innovation which lasts to this day.
—Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 28 July 2025
Nautilus is bold in its changes to Captain Nemo’s story — new monsters, new villains — but imitative to other genre series in execution, and the vibe is a little didactic.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 25 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for imitative
Recent Examples of Synonyms for imitative
Adjective
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Ideal for the ultimate no-makeup makeup look, for which Westman is known, the innovative blush harnesses biomimicry pigment technology, which lessens the risk of inflammation by encapsulating the synthetic pigments in the blush.—
Jenny Berg,
Vogue,
9 Feb. 2026
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And the best way to sidestep that is by picking a pair of socks made from a moisture-wicking blend—ideally a combination of merino wool (at least 50 percent) and synthetic materials.—
Jonathan Thompson,
Travel + Leisure,
9 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
This image oscillates between mimetic naturalism and the geometry of the digital design process.—
Thomas Demand,
Artforum,
2 Nov. 2025
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This recycling of historical materials, multiplied by the dozens of characters developed in Bomarzo, produces a mimetic effect.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
8 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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The hiker aesthetic is rounded out with hardware trims on the Ghillie laces and a warm faux-fur lining.—
Karla Rodriguez,
Footwear News,
11 Feb. 2026
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For bird lovers who want to recreate this whimsical display, fill a medium-size pot with about three-quarters full with potting mix, then place a faux bird's nest from the crafts shop on top (lightly fill it with potting mix as well).—
Miranda Crowell,
Better Homes & Gardens,
11 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Previous observations of individual apes playing alone had raised the possibility that animals could engage in simulated play, study authors Amalia Bastos and Christopher Krupenye noted in the study, which was published Thursday in the journal Science.—
Amarachi Orie,
CNN Money,
9 Feb. 2026
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In 2019, Kasieczka and his collaborators announced the LHC Olympics 2020, a contest in which participants submitted algorithms to find anomalous events in three sets of (simulated) LHC data.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
3 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The biggest one is that the team has reworked how victories are achieved so that campaigns feel less formulaic, adhering to the goals of the age.—
Gieson Cacho,
Mercury News,
4 Feb. 2026
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But neither the writers nor the actors are interested in anything so formulaic.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
30 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Brandon Tseng, co‑founder of Shield AI, told CNBC that Hivemind enables other companies and militaries to develop their own artificial-intelligence pilots locally, and Singapore would own that intellectual property.—
Lim Hui Jie,
CNBC,
7 Feb. 2026
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Sugary drinks are defined as non-alcoholic beverages with natural or artificial sweeteners, or drinks with less than 50% fruit juice.—
Karen Morfitt,
CBS News,
7 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Pharmacy technician students practice compounding mock medications such as lip balms and creams.—
Wilborn P. Nobles III,
Dallas Morning News,
10 Feb. 2026
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The oversized mock-neck sweater tucks chicly into the pencil-leg pants, primed for rolling at the hems and styling with chunky sneakers for long travel days.—
Olivia Young,
Travel + Leisure,
9 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The agency allegedly used Bank of America accounts to lure young women with fake modeling offers, while financial records suggest the bank was aware of these suspicious connections, according to plaintiff’s claims.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
13 Feb. 2026
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Some guests got very into it—one adopted a fake British accent for the duration.—
Rachel Syme,
New Yorker,
13 Feb. 2026
Video
A Look at Uncommon Onomatopoeia
Some imitative words are more surprising than others
Cite this Entry
“Imitative.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/imitative. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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