copycat

American  

[kop-ee-kat] / ˈkɒp iˌkæt /

noun

copycats plural

1. a person or thing that copies, imitates, mimics, or follows the lead of another, as a child who says or does exactly the same as another child.

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adjective

1. imitating or repeating a recent, well-known occurrence.

   a copycat murder.

verb (used with object)

copycatted, copycatting

1. to imitate or mimic.

   new domestic wines that copycat the expensive imports.

2. to copy slavishly; reproduce.

   The clothes were copycatted straight from designer originals.

copycat British  

/ ˈkɒpɪˌkæt /

noun

1. informal

   1. a person, esp a child, who imitates or copies another

   2. ( as modifier )

      copycat murders

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• copycatism
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• copycats
  plural

Etymology

Origin of copycat

An Americanism dating back to 1895–1900; copy + cat ( def. )

Explanation

Someone who mimics what you do or say is a copycat. If your little brother orders fettuccine Alfredo after you've already ordered it, you might call him a copycat. The word copycat is a lighthearted, gently derogatory word for a person who imitates someone else. If you love your friend's red shoes so much that you run out and buy identical ones, she might call you a copycat. When a criminal commits a crime that exactly follows the pattern of a previous crime, newspapers often refer to it as a copycat crime. The word has been in use in the United States since at least the 1880s.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

copycat copycats copycatted copycatting

Education minister Sonny Angara said the government was "very concerned", adding: "We don't want a situation seen in the United States, where there have been concerns about copycat incidents."

From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2026

But with what seems like a Ripper copycat on the loose, everyone needs to put aside their preconceived notions and figure out what’s going on.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 8, 2026

He told Miles, the author, that Berkshire’s stock price could drop whenever Jain announces his retirement, and that shareholders shouldn’t expect him to be a copycat.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 28, 2026

Howe returned to the U.S., broke and unemployed, only to discover that copycat lock-stitch sewing machines had become extremely popular.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 12, 2026

Sandi also raises her hand like a copycat and tells Yoyo and Fifi to raise their hands too.

From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez

There’s been plenty of skepticism about whether the latter two were Chapman copycats rather than murders actually inspired by the book.

From Salon ● Jul. 25, 2026

The second threat is from open-weight model makers and copycats finding ways to mimic the performance of the leading models at a fraction of the cost.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 16, 2026

“Those copycats up north aren’t going to be stealing this one,” said Spiegel, as the crowd erupted into applause and laughter.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2026

So, naturally, there's a whole Liszt of copycats in 2026.

From BBC ● May 8, 2026

I had less than a minute before the copycats began.

From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad

The Somerset company sued the supermarket chain in 2022 over claims Aldi had "copycatted" its Cloudy Lemon Cider in "taste and appearance".

From BBC ● Jan. 20, 2025

Every innovation is quickly copycatted, suddenly making it seem a lot less innovative.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 3, 2021

She even finds it difficult to appreciate her fashion sense, which has since been copycatted by many a Free People-loving millennial.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2019

If anything, Krzyzewski has copycatted Calipari’s strategy of recruiting NBA-ready players who are only in college because NBA rules require that they spend a year in school before they’re drafted.

From Time ● Apr. 5, 2015

Politicians from both sides of the aisle have critically lauded it, and at least three other states have copycatted Georgia Work$.

From Slate ● Nov. 9, 2011

As for the burger wars, Saleh said there was some risk for further copycatting.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 25, 2025

Copyright law is well equipped to differentiate between slightly derivative human ingenuity and reductive copycatting.

From Slate ● Oct. 17, 2023

The preponderance of frightful tales in this program is obviously a matter of availability, cinematic copycatting and curatorial discretion.

From New York Times ● Jan. 28, 2022

Critics attribute Brazil’s most recent flat Earth craze to poor public education, copycatting from abroad and to the increase in social media use.

From The Guardian ● Nov. 6, 2019

The familiar title aside, this miniseries produced by Mindy Kaling isn’t copycatting the original Richard Curtis romcom.

From Washington Times ● Jun. 6, 2019