emulate
Americanverb (used with object)
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emulates,
present (3rd person singular)
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emulated,
past participle, past
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emulating
present participle
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to try to equal or excel; imitate with effort to equal or surpass.
to emulate one's father as a concert violinist.
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to rival with some degree of success.
Some smaller cities now emulate the major capitals in their cultural offerings.
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Computers.
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to imitate (a particular computer system) by using a software system, often including a microprogram or another computer that enables it to do the same work, run the same programs, etc., as the first.
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to replace (software) with hardware to perform the same task.
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adjective
verb
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to attempt to equal or surpass, esp by imitation
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to rival or compete with
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to make one computer behave like (another different type of computer) so that the imitating system can operate on the same data and execute the same programs as the imitated system
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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emulatornoun
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overemulateverb (used with object)
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emulativeadjective
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nonemulativeadjective
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unemulativeadjective
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emulativelyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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emulatesimple
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emulatessimple
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have emulatedperfect
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has emulatedperfect
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am emulatingprogressive
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are emulatingprogressive
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is emulatingprogressive
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have been emulatingperfect progressive
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has been emulatingperfect progressive
Past
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emulatedsimple
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had emulatedperfect
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was emulatingprogressive
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were emulatingprogressive
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had been emulatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of emulate
First recorded in 1580–90; from Latin aemulātus, past participle of aemulārī “to rival”; see emulous, -ate 1
Explanation
When you emulate someone, you imitate them, especially with the idea of matching their success. When someone is impressive because of their great skills, brains, strength, or accomplishments, others will emulate them. To emulate is to imitate and model yourself after someone. People emulate role models — people they want to be like. After Michael Jordan retired from the NBA, player after player tried to emulate Jordan's game and success. It's hard to be as good as someone like that, but having a hero to emulate can be helpful in many areas of life.
Vocabulary lists containing emulate
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Tremblay also said he could identify with Curtis, who tries to emulate the courage he sees in his favorite comic book and game characters.
From Barron's ● Oct. 25, 2026
But they don’t find the model easy to emulate, according to the piece.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026
Horton showed up to his audition and instinctively tried to emulate Tanter’s signature baritone voice.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
One way to emulate highly successful people is to start in a tactile sector, like construction or auto repair, that gives you hands-on experience.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 21, 2026
Luxury hotels and ocean liners—among them the Titanic—installed batteries of rowing machines so their clients could stay in shape and emulate their rowing heroes.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
SafeMind has two models: Red Tempest, which is an “offensive” model that emulates AI adversaries, and Blue Solano, which is a “defensive” model designed to fix identified issues.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
In doing so, he emulates his friend Claressa Shields, who was ringside and remains female boxing's trailblazer with undisputed crowns in three divisions.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2025
Artificial photosynthesis, which emulates this natural process of photosynthesis, uses sunlight to produce valuable resources, such as hydrogen, and it has garnered attention as a sustainable energy solution.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 2, 2024
“Much of the governors’ behavior emulates what the president does,” Molina said.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 27, 2024
He knows Vincent admires and emulates those two.
From "Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers" by Deborah Heiligman
Felix Salmon, Elizabeth Spiers, and Emily Peck examine Greenspan’s legacy and the way it’s being emulated by the Fed’s current chair, Kevin Warsh.
From Slate ● Jun. 27, 2026
Wessel Nijman emulated fellow Dutchman Michael van Gerwen as he continued his superb form in the Players Championship with victory in the 14th tournament of the year.
From BBC ● May 5, 2026
Using an emulated target trial approach, which relies on existing healthcare data rather than traditional clinical trials, the researchers were able to assess outcomes more quickly and efficiently.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 14, 2026
From there, section by section, the exhibition groups her artworks with those who claimed or emulated her.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 1, 2026
As if to underline the association, the British Parliament passed a Jewish Naturalisation Act in 1753, which was not to be emulated in any other European country for half a century.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
Meanwhile, the price of lab-grown diamonds — or diamonds made by emulating the earth’s natural heat and pressure conditions — has fallen, as technological advances and production expansion lead to oversupply.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026
She held her arms aloft and pointed to the sky in celebration after emulating Asher-Smith's 100m-200m European double in 2018.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
But issues arose when emulating the blue and brown colors, which both require large amounts of Blue No. 1.
From Salon ● Jun. 29, 2026
Chairman Warsh is emulating Greenspan’s early, inscrutable communication style.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026
Colonel Korn demanded, emulating Colonel Cathcart’s harsh, self-righteous tone.
From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
