copycats 1 of 2

noun

plural of copycat
as in imitators
a person who adopts the appearance or behavior of another especially in an obvious way every rock singer who makes it big soon has a whole cluster of copycats

Synonyms & Similar Words

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copycats

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of copycat
1
as in copies
to make an exact likeness of asked her stylist to copycat a hairstyle from the magazine

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in imitates
to use (someone or something) as the model for one's speech, mannerisms, or behavior a performer who slavishly copycats another never rises to the level of true stardom

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 copycats
Noun
More comparisons show up in an Allrecipes roundup of Aldi copycats, which flags Clancy’s Original Potato Chips as an alternative to Lay’s and Choceur Peanut Butter Cups as a stand-in for Reese’s. — Ashley Lynch, Charlotte Observer, 23 Oct. 2026 An Allrecipes roundup of Aldi copycats highlights Clancy’s Original Potato Chips as a Lay’s alternative, Choceur Peanut Butter Cups as a Reese’s comparison and Benton’s Peanut Butter Filled Cookies as a stand-in for Girl Scout Tagalongs. — Ashley Lynch, Sacbee.com, 23 Oct. 2026 Successful brands such as Buc-ee’s, for example, can create customer familiarity that might spur copycats looking for shortcuts to gain market share. — Patrik Jonsson, Christian Science Monitor, 15 Sep. 2026 The success that the Canadiens, Wild, Senators, Mammoth and Hurricanes have enjoyed with those above deals has, understandably, created some copycats. — James Mirtle, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026 The show was a phenomenon that continues to inspire copycats and parodies; Hansen emerged as an icon for some, and a meme for others. — David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2026 Children are born copycats and seeing parents using the toilet can inspire them to do the same. — Bestreviews, Mercury News, 21 Aug. 2026 Krasner warned potential copycats who were thinking of imitating Hughes' behavior. — Kelsie Cairns , Louis Casiano, FOXNews.com, 20 Aug. 2026 That takedown involved the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment and Egyptian authorities; GCI's report says the brand and its copycats rebuilt their audience during the World Cup. — Boaz Sobrado, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for copycats
  1. imitators
  2. copies
  3. imitates
  4. followers
  5. reproduces
  6. emulates
  7. echoes
  8. replicates
Noun
  • Dee Brock created the phenomenon that went on to add billions in value to the NFL franchise and spawn imitators.
    — Emma Hinchliffe, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Deafheaven broke the mold by introducing blinding light to rock music’s darkest corner, but after wave upon wave of imitators, the only subversion left is to blot out the sun.
    — Patrick Lyons, Pitchfork, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of imitators
Verb
  • Check what a website actually copies A website's Copy button can place different text on your clipboard than what appears on the page.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Someone else copies them for free and undercuts their pricing before the training run has even paid back.
    — Stephen Messer, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of copies
Verb
  • Constantin Brâncuși’s marble-and-limestone sculpture L’oiseau (1923/1947), for example, commands the space, while Wolfgang Tillmans’s 2022 photograph tree filling window imitates an open window in a closed space.
    — Hikmat Mohammed, ARTnews.com, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Over the weekend, movie-theater chain AMC Entertainment accused Robinhood of creating an unauthorized market that imitates trading in AMC shares through its overseas platform without the company’s approval.
    — Camila Grigera Naón, Fortune, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of imitates
Noun
  • Her tens of millions of social media followers give her a platform far beyond her New York district, and her nickname, AOC, has become one of the most recognizable in American politics.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 24 Oct. 2026
  • Two fraudulent videos targeting the Senate candidate were posted on Tuesday on X by an account created last month that had few followers.
    — Shannon Bond, NPR, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of followers
Verb
  • Basquiat makes an image, reproduces it, cuts it up and gives it another life.
    — Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Once researchers can send participants home with a device that reliably reproduces sauna-like heat stress, the study pipeline gets longer, cheaper and larger.
    — Samantha Agate, Kansas City Star, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of reproduces
Verb
  • On Wednesday, President Laura Fernández inaugurated a mega-prison that emulates the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) that has become a symbol of Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele's security strategy.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Nvidia, which surrendered $589 billion in a day to DeepSeek's legend, is the company DeepSeek now depends on and emulates.
    — Jon Markman, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of emulates
Noun
  • Admittedly, the album’s ’90s sound palette has echoes of millennial nostalgia bait—but then again, when has nostalgia not been part of Hemsworth’s appeal?
    — Mehan Jayasuriya, Pitchfork, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Several echoes of the borderlands mark the menu at Mariella’s, which is as extensive as that of a full-on cantina and grill.
    — Daniel Hernandez, Los Angeles Times, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of echoes
Verb
  • In that sense, New Stanford replicates an ancient form of patriarchal bias that casts men as the norm and women as an atypical other.
    — Judy Berman, Time, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Researchers at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) have developed a robotic arm that replicates aspects of human touch perception.
    — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of replicates

Browse Nearby Words

copycat
copycats
copycatted
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Cite this Entry

“Copycats.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/copycats. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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