impersonate
verb (used with object)
to assume the character or appearance of; pretend to be.
had been impersonating
-
past perfect progressiveof impersonate.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
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.
Nigel Farage had defended Edwards over the salute photograph, claiming that he had been impersonating Basil Fawlty.
From BBC ● Mar. 31, 2026
The Israeli judge, who ordered her extradition in 2021, said she had been "impersonating someone with mental illness".
From BBC ● Apr. 3, 2023
One of the first celebrities to be impersonated on Twitter was Shaquille O’Neal, who joined the platform in November 2008 and said he created an account in part because someone else had been impersonating him.
From New York Times ● Nov. 2, 2022
In the caption beneath, he wrote that someone had been impersonating him on the platform before slyly concluding, “This rudeness has been reported to @instagram and the goddess #Adrestia.”
From Slate ● Feb. 22, 2018
Betty, who had scarcely been able to keep from laughing out when “Harry” had been impersonating his father, so good and funny a performance he had made of it, now sighed.
From Betty Lee, Freshman by Harriet Pyne Grove
