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
100 Top "SAT" Words
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"Letter from Birmingham Jail" by Martin Luther King, Jr. (1963)
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300 Most Difficult "SAT" Words
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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:
"Other shopping centres are trying to emulate and create what we've got."
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
For the activists at Pro Animal DC, who are seeking to emulate places like California and Pittsburgh that have enacted laws against foie gras, it's about fighting animal cruelty.
From Barron's ● Sep. 28, 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
When if comes to child immunizations, Offit has observed, there are no “peers” to emulate: “Different developed world countries make different decisions based on demographics, health system capacity, vaccine access, and vaccine cost,” Offit notes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
His mission was to play as many masters as possible and to emulate the Soviets’ training regimen for the Yugoslav tournament.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
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
In “Digging Stars,” the protagonist is an astronomer from Zimbabwe who emulates her father’s profession.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 24, 2024
In addition, he is continually amazed by how much Maxine emulates her parents, how much she respects their tastes and their ways.
From "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri
His effectiveness here has been noticed too by England boss Thomas Tuchel who, during this international break, has emulated Arteta's use of Lewis-Skelly.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
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
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
P&G emulated that approach by asking viewers to pay up to $9.99 to see the entire “Golden Pear Affair,” though they can also unlock future episodes by watching promotional content.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 18, 2026
Though I emulated them, I never thought it possible for a boy from the countryside to rival them in their worldliness.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
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
Last year the then prime minister of the Faroes, Aksel Johannesen, told BBC News that Shetland could boost growth, revitalise island life and encourage population growth by emulating his country's tunnel network.
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 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
In this view, Americans care less about emulating the top tier than about simply having a fair share of the bounty and a chance to carve out a place for themselves in society.
From "Class Matters" by The New York Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
