From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishmimicmim‧ic1 /ˈmɪmɪk/ verb (mimicked, mimicking) [transitive] 1 IMITATEto copy the way someone speaks or behaves, especially in order to make people laugh SYN imitate, take off He could mimic all the teachers’ accents. ‘I’m so sorry, ’ she mimicked.2 IMITATEto behave or operate in exactly the same way as something or someone else Europe should not try to mimic Japan: we have to find our own path to successful modernisation. The drug mimics the action of the body’s own chemicals.3 HBAIMITATEif an animal mimics something, it looks or sounds very like it a fly whose size and colour exactly mimics that of the wasp —mimicry noun [uncountable] He has a gift for mimicry.→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
mimic• ""Hmm, '' Phil said. ""Hmm, '' Graham mimicked.• Jackson mimicked a foreign accent to make his point.• Firstly, why should a voluntary arrangement have to mimic an Administration Order?• In its early stages, the symptoms of fatigue and nausea mimic heat exhaustion and can confuse the rangers.• The taste and texture mimic that of ice cream, without all the fat.• Occasionally the pain may mimic that of pancreatitis, gall bladder disease, appendicitis, or angina pectoris.• This insect mimics the appearance of a wasp.• The movement of energy from one end of the tube to the other mimics the effect of a moving mass.• Why do we not mimic the professionals or their caddies in other areas of the game?• The result is an epidermis which is better able to mimic the softness and freshness of younger skin.• Yolanda mimics their father opening an envelope.• Yolanda mimicked their father opening the letter.• The parasites can fight back, with a range of eggs that mimic those of their chosen host.mimicmimic2 noun [countable] HBAIMITATEa person or animal that is good at copying the movements, sound, or appearance of someone or something else → impressionist, impersonatorExamples from the Corpus
mimic• Some species of birds have developed the ability to distinguish between model and mimic and will feed on the imposters.• Parrots are excellent mimics.• What became of Gary Glitter mimics when Glitter got disgraced?• She is a remarkably good mimic.• The first group, mimics, consists of the northern mockingbird, the brown thrasher and the gray catbird.• The universal Turing machine is a universal mimic.Origin mimic1 (1500-1600) mimic “copying” ((16-21 centuries)), from Latin mimicus, from Greek, from mimos; → MIME1 