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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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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Recent Examples of imitative
Girard drew from his early-career studies of literary figures such as Proust the insight that desire is essentially imitative (or mimetic) rather than straightforwardly directed toward its apparent objects.
—
Michelle Orange, Harper's Magazine, 13 Dec. 2023
Mae’s life aligns with the repetitive, imitative work of Warhol, showing us that the story of growing into an adult — becoming a woman — is a story of aesthetic creation.
—Bekah Waalkes, Washington Post, 10 July 2023
The crowded true-crime space tends to be an imitative one—a quality that can work in victims’ favor, as with this docuseries, which builds on the empathy-building of its predecessors.
—Inkoo Kang, The New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2023
The mystery account behind the AI song, identifying as Ghostwriter, left no clues about how the imitative track was brought into being, or what information was fed into programs to create it.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 17 Apr. 2023
See All Example Sentences for imitative
Michelle Orange, Harper's Magazine, 13 Dec. 2023
Mae’s life aligns with the repetitive, imitative work of Warhol, showing us that the story of growing into an adult — becoming a woman — is a story of aesthetic creation.
—Bekah Waalkes, Washington Post, 10 July 2023
The crowded true-crime space tends to be an imitative one—a quality that can work in victims’ favor, as with this docuseries, which builds on the empathy-building of its predecessors.
—Inkoo Kang, The New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2023
The mystery account behind the AI song, identifying as Ghostwriter, left no clues about how the imitative track was brought into being, or what information was fed into programs to create it.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 17 Apr. 2023
See All Example Sentences for imitative
Recent Examples of Synonyms for imitative
Adjective
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Drug overdose deaths, largely caused by the synthetic opioid drug fentanyl, reached record highs in the United States in 2021.—
Moises Velasquez-Manoff Robert Petkoff Emma Kehlbeck Zak Mouton,
New York Times,
16 Feb. 2025
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Drug traffickers mix fentanyl, a synthetic narcotic that is 10 times more powerful than other opioids, with other illicit drugs in an effort to drive addiction and attract repeat buyers, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration.—
Mary Divine,
Twin Cities,
16 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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These mimetic dynamics play out not just within countries but between them.—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus,
The New Yorker,
24 Feb. 2025
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My heroes are all chameleonic actors who transform and manage to transcend something simply mimetic.—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
10 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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But the biggest changes can be found at the back of the car, where the rear end has been outfitted with a pair of vertical stabilizers and a set of faux afterburners and missiles.—
Bryan Hood,
Robb Report,
27 Feb. 2025
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That his faux prayer hardly even touched on the show’s nominees didn’t prevent it whatsoever from killing.—
Hershal Pandya,
Vulture,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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However, like all trends, a litany of formulaic bands would eventually sprout from the scene and spoil some of the otherwise refreshing innovation established by metalcore’s pioneering acts.—
Quentin Thane Singer,
Forbes,
19 Feb. 2025
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Critics said his plots were formulaic and his style overwrought.—
Bill Trott,
USA TODAY,
11 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Right-hander Clay Holmes threw live batting practice for the second time Monday, pitching three simulated innings.—
Abbey Mastracco,
New York Daily News,
17 Feb. 2025
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These scams are meticulously crafted to appear legitimate, often involving fake trading platforms and simulated profits.—
Kurt Knutsson, CyberGuy Report,
Fox News,
15 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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The response was made all the more pronounced by Lively’s mock shock look at her husband.—
Dominic Patten,
Deadline,
16 Feb. 2025
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Thomas leapt out of his judges’ chair and mock knelt in front of Carter.—
Marcus Thompson II,
The Athletic,
15 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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The space station’s microbiome represents an artificial extreme.—
Lauren Leffer,
Popular Science,
27 Feb. 2025
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But stuck in the middle tier are 150 countries that must endure artificial limits on computing supply chains that are kept at least a generation behind US technology accessible by the top tier.—
Ashley Belanger,
Ars Technica,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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That is, the mimic leaves were longer, and less lobed.—
Ari Daniel,
NPR,
14 Sep. 2024
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Sting is also a mimic, able to copy Charlotte’s whistle, even though, as the slightly creepy would-be scientist living upstairs tells her, spiders don’t have vocal cords.—
Bill Goodykoontz,
The Arizona Republic,
11 Apr. 2024
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 3 Mar. 2025.
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