as in to play
to pretend to be (what one is not) in appearance or behavior
likes to personate the man of the world, but he's still the small-town hick that he always was
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of personate
Till’s motifs swept though the ensemble, as horns, clarinets, bassoons, violin all had a chance to personate the character.
—
By Libby Hanssen, kansascity.com, 3 June 2017
By Libby Hanssen, kansascity.com, 3 June 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for personate
Verb
-
Cash, 47, played for Francona when the Reds manager helmed the Boston Red Sox and then served as Francona’s bullpen coach in Cleveland before becoming the Rays’ manager.—
C. Trent Rosecrans,
New York Times,
26 July 2025
-
Messi and Alba practiced with the club Friday in anticipation of playing in Saturday’s match before MLS announced the suspension.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
26 July 2025
Verb
-
Scammers impersonating Social Security rank No. 2 on the list; scammers impersonating the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, as well as Medicare, rank No. 3.—
Susan Tompor,
Freep.com,
24 July 2025
-
Marshal Goodnight faces charges including impersonating a peace officer, being a felon in possession of a firearm, being a felon in possession of a stun gun, possessing a baton and possessing a tear gas weapon, police said.—
Don Sweeney,
Sacbee.com,
23 July 2025
Verb
-
And the new feature is sparking its own concerns over its potential use in creating deepfakes—digitally altered videos of individuals that can imitate someone’s likeness and can often be published without their consent.—
Solcyré Burga,
Time,
30 July 2025
-
The bottles are so synonymous with the brand that people make an effort to imitate the bottles to pass off fake products as the real deal.—
BestReviews,
Chicago Tribune,
29 July 2025
Verb
-
When the Tea app breach occurred, social media users relished in mocking and threatening the safety of the women whose personal information had been leaked.—
Alana Wise,
NPR,
2 Aug. 2025
-
Allies of the president have mocked Dooley’s lack of experience, questioned his Republican credentials, and accused Kemp of putting personal loyalty above party unity in a must-win race.—
Samantha-Jo Roth,
The Washington Examiner,
1 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Players will investigate real manuscripts and historic accounts that complicate established theories; probe characters portrayed by actors and explore restricted areas in landmark monuments, some of which have never been accessed by non-custodians.—
Ann Abel,
Forbes.com,
30 July 2025
-
The panel presented an animation that portrayed the progression of both aircraft before the collision.—
Ben Mause,
Baltimore Sun,
30 July 2025
Verb
-
Veteran acts shift their sound and break into a new era, or a younger generation will capitalize on the hunger for nostalgia.—
Larisha Paul,
Rolling Stone,
3 Aug. 2025
-
India announces National Film Awards: Shah Rukh Khan bags his first ever Shah Rukh Khan made his acting debut in the 1980s on TV and the 1992 film Deewana was his Bollywood debut.—
Sweta Kaushal,
Forbes.com,
2 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Personate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/personate. Accessed 7 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share