copy·cat
ˈkä-pē-ˌkat 
often attributive
1
: one who imitates or adopts the behavior or practices of another
2
: an imitative act or product
copycat board games
copycatted; copycatting
: to act as a copycat
Examples of copycat in a Sentence
Noun
She called me a copycat for wearing the same dress.
every rock singer who makes it big soon has a whole cluster of copycats
Verb
asked her stylist to copycat a hairstyle from the magazine
a performer who slavishly copycats another never rises to the level of true stardom
Recent Examples on the Web
Maya Goldman, Axios, 24 Feb. 2025
In 2022, over 109,000 people in the U.S. died of drug overdoses, roughly 76,000 of which were caused by synthetic opioids such as fentanyl or its copycats.
—Gabrielle M. Etzel, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 6 Feb. 2025
Jacquelyn Schneider, Foreign Affairs, 14 Dec. 2021
And that applies to fashion design, decor, and even to the travel industry, where there’s a real tendency to copycat successful ideas.
—Krista Simmons, Sunset Magazine, 20 Jan. 2023
See All Example Sentences for copycat
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Noun
Makers of copycat weight-loss drugs and digital health companies that sell them are bracing for upheaval now that the Food and Drug Administration has declared Novo Nordisk's blockbusters Ozempic and Wegovy are no longer in shortage.
—Maya Goldman, Axios, 24 Feb. 2025
In 2022, over 109,000 people in the U.S. died of drug overdoses, roughly 76,000 of which were caused by synthetic opioids such as fentanyl or its copycats.
—Gabrielle M. Etzel, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 6 Feb. 2025
Verb
North Korea famously hacked the pharmaceutical company Pfizer in an attempt to steal its COVID-19 vaccine technology, and Chinese exfiltrations of U.S. defense industrial base research has led to copycat technological advances in aircraft and missile development.
—Jacquelyn Schneider, Foreign Affairs, 14 Dec. 2021
And that applies to fashion design, decor, and even to the travel industry, where there’s a real tendency to copycat successful ideas.
—Krista Simmons, Sunset Magazine, 20 Jan. 2023
See All Example Sentences for copycat
Cite this Entry
“Copycat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/copycat. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.
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