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
The results suggested that felines may have imitative skills and the ability to recognize behavioral similarities.
—
Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 May 2025
Tesfaye and Ortega model two opposing modes of imitative, hollow performance, like a bad actor’s varying notions of good acting.
—Charles Bramesco, IndieWire, 15 May 2025
Explaining Traditions - Folk Behavior In Modern Culture By Simon J. Bronner
This kind of imitative play—not just Cooties but also House or Cops and Robbers—helps children make sense of the world.
—Bruce Handy, The Atlantic, 16 Apr. 2025
The social self is avoidance-based, conforming, imitative, predictable, planned, and hardworking.
—Ellen Choi, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for imitative
Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 May 2025
Tesfaye and Ortega model two opposing modes of imitative, hollow performance, like a bad actor’s varying notions of good acting.
—Charles Bramesco, IndieWire, 15 May 2025
Explaining Traditions - Folk Behavior In Modern Culture By Simon J. Bronner
This kind of imitative play—not just Cooties but also House or Cops and Robbers—helps children make sense of the world.
—Bruce Handy, The Atlantic, 16 Apr. 2025
The social self is avoidance-based, conforming, imitative, predictable, planned, and hardworking.
—Ellen Choi, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for imitative
Recent Examples of Synonyms for imitative
Adjective
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Getty Images That upward trajectory stands in contrast to the United States, where life expectancy virtually flatlined during the 2010s and even dipped slightly on occasions during the 2010s—a trend blamed in large part on a surge in deaths from overdoses from the synthetic opioid fentanyl.—
Micah McCartney,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Sep. 2025
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McCurdy and his team there have watched the kratom market shift from simple leaf powder to concentrated extracts and now to semi-synthetic compounds like 7-OH.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
18 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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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
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To get robotic collectives closer to Terminator’s mimetic polyalloy, the team wants to make the robots smaller.—
Ars Technica,
Ars Technica,
1 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The dual-sided design has plush faux-shearling on one side for extra-cold days and soft coral fleece on the other.—
Jamie Fischer,
Better Homes & Gardens,
18 Sep. 2025
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Steve Madden Tully-P Patent Shoulder Bag Go for a glitzy look with this burgundy shoulder bag in glossy faux patent leather.—
Jamie Allison Sanders,
PEOPLE,
18 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Exceptional dining options Hotel food can sometimes become feel formulaic—not so at this property.—
Sherrie Nachman,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
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As injuries mounted up, the more formulaic Arsenal became, and the yearning for someone more expressive grew.—
Art de Roché,
New York Times,
21 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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His view aligns with ideas put forth by Gerard O’Neill, the late physicist and Princeton University professor who posited that humans should aspire to live in gargantuan space stations that orbit close to home and spin to provide simulated gravity.—
Jackie Wattles,
CNN Money,
12 Sep. 2025
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In these trials, a DJI M300 drone carried a defibrillator in response to a simulated 999 call.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
8 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Learners also engaged in mock sales calls with members of the Hawks’ sales staff, receiving real-time feedback in small breakout rooms.—
Ryan Stowers,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
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Analysts Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo in their latest 2026 mock draft have Peterson edging out BYU’s AJ Dybantsa, Duke’s Cameron Boozer and Tennessee’s Nate Ament for the top spot.—
Gary Bedore,
Kansas City Star,
16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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To address these challenges, the Institute of Energy carried out research on the steady-state operation performance of China’s USD one-trillion ‘artificial sun’ fusion reactor.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
12 Sep. 2025
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Vote as many times as you’d like until then without using bots or any other artificial methods of voting.—
Nathan Canilao,
Mercury News,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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These are games that mimic gambling, like slot machines, video poker and casino-style card games by selling virtual coins.—
Kaitlyn Schallhorn,
Oc Register,
15 Sep. 2025
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The active chemicals in cannabis mimic natural brain molecules called endocannabinoids, which stimulate cannabinoid receptors — together, these two elements represent the brain’s endocannabinoid system.—
Kristen Rogers,
CNN Money,
2 Sep. 2025
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 19 Sep. 2025.
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