impersonate

verb

im-ˈpər-sə-ˌnāt How to pronounce impersonate (audio)
Definition of impersonatenext
1
as in to imitate
to pretend to be (what one is not) in appearance or behavior a school intruder was caught trying to impersonate a teacher

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in to portray
to present a portrayal or performance of interpreters at the living history museum impersonate figures who are known to have actually lived in the colonial town

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 impersonate The classic example would be a man impersonating an identical twin to sleep with his wife or, as in the infamous Revenge of the Nerds scene, stealing a jock’s mask during a costume party and sleeping with his girlfriend. — Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 21 Feb. 2025 Colleyville police returned money to the victim of Bitcoin scammers impersonating a police department, according to a post on the department’s Facebook. — Lillie Davidson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 16 Feb. 2025 What Timmy does brilliantly and what Jim really liberated Timmy to do, is not to impersonate Bob, not to do an impression, not to match him spot on. — Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 2 Mar. 2025 The phishing campaign employs malicious adverts that have been created to impersonate PayPal and display the official PayPal website, the report revealed. — Davey Winder, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for impersonate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for impersonate
  1. imitate
  2. portray
  3. mock
  4. play
  5. perform
  6. depict
  7. interpret
  8. do
Verb
  • Munn shared that the motion is a fidget of Mulaney's that Malcolm has learned to imitate.
    — Hannah Sacks, People.com, 12 Mar. 2025
  • Younger narwhals also tended to imitate the behavior of older ones, indicating that social learning could influence how narwhals use their tusks, according to the study.
    — Julianna Bragg, CNN, 8 Mar. 2025
Definition of imitate
Verb
  • Good American Family, released on March 19, stars Ellen Pompeo and Mark Duplass as Kristine and Michael Barnett, while 27-year-old Imogen Faith Reid portrays Natalia.
    — Monica Mercuri, Forbes, 20 Mar. 2025
  • Avari also noted that one of the 13 vignettes portrays a standing farmer—the only male figure in the in the piece.
    — Karen K. Ho, ARTnews.com, 19 Mar. 2025
Definition of portray
Verb
  • Musk has mocked Ukraine and its president, Volodymyr Zelensky, repeatedly since Russia invaded its neighbor in February 2022.
    — Lily Hay Newman, WIRED, 11 Mar. 2025
  • The Vice President’s face has been subject to mock meme edits for several months, as political commentators used editing tools to exaggerate his features and create child-like caricatures.
    — Dani Di Placido, Forbes, 8 Mar. 2025
Definition of mock
Verb
  • Others lament that young people will lose the chance to build up fluid mental math skills while playing: develop number sense, compute sums and products, budget, compare value, think strategically or reason using simple probability.
    — Ann Rutledge, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2025
  • Jericho Rosales plays Quezon, and the cast also includes Mon Confiado, Benjamin Alves, Karylle Yuzon, Romnick Sarmenta, J.C. Santos and Cris Villanueva.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 17 Mar. 2025
Definition of play
Verb
  • Wonder gave short speech before performing two songs during the service.
    — David Matthews, New York Daily News, 11 Mar. 2025
  • In February, Boone — who was nominated for best new artist at the 2025 Grammy Awards — spoke with PEOPLE about his excitement around performing during the big night.
    — Ilana Kaplan, People.com, 11 Mar. 2025
Definition of perform
Verb
  • Outside those values, the objects depicted weren’t easily recognizable as trees.
    — Katie Hunt, CNN, 14 Mar. 2025
  • An oil study depicting a lion has officially been attributed to Eugène Delacroix, a key figure of the Romanticist movement of the 19th century, and will now head to sale in France.
    — Alex Greenberger, ARTnews.com, 13 Mar. 2025
Definition of depict
Verb
  • This happens because the brain interprets rejection—or even the fear of rejection—as a potential relational risk, activating survival mechanisms rather than connection.
    — Mark Travers, Forbes, 10 Mar. 2025
  • The hope now for David Cassirer and his family is that the 9th Circuit will interpret the California law passed last year to take precedence over federal law.
    — Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Mar. 2025
Definition of interpret
Verb
  • Then Sterling did some less effective things and got suspended anyway, so that mad idea was, at least, parked for the time being.
    — Amy Lawrence, The Athletic, 13 Mar. 2025
  • What needs to be done to prevent a Kessler meltdown?
    — Bruce Dorminey, Forbes, 12 Mar. 2025
Definition of do

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Cite this Entry

“Impersonate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impersonate. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.

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