Dictionary
Thesaurus
Reference
Translate
Web
Related Searches
on Ask.com
Synonyms
Nearby Entries
impersonate - 5 dictionary results

im⋅per⋅son⋅ate

  [v. im-pur-suh-neyt; adj. im-pur-suh-nit, -neyt] verb, -at⋅ed, -at⋅ing, adjective
Use impersonate in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to assume the character or appearance of; pretend to be: He was arrested for impersonating a police officer.
2. to mimic the voice, mannerisms, etc., of (a person) in order to entertain.
3. to act or play the part of; personate.
4. Archaic. to represent in personal or bodily form; personify; typify.
–adjective
5. embodied in a person; invested with personality.
Origin:
1615–25; im- 1 + person + -ate 1

Related forms:
im⋅per⋅son⋅a⋅tion, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To impersonate
im·per·son·ate   (ĭm-pûr'sə-nāt')   
tr.v.   im·per·son·at·ed, im·per·son·at·ing, im·per·son·ates
  1. To assume the character or appearance of, especially fraudulently: impersonate a police officer.
  2. To imitate the appearance, voice, or manner of; mimic: an entertainer who impersonates celebrities.
  3. Archaic To embody; personify.
im·per'son·a'tion n., im·per'son·a'tor n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

Impersonate

Im*per"son*ate\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Impersonated; p. pr. & vb. n. Impersonating.]

1. To invest with personality; to endow with the form of a living being.

2. To ascribe the qualities of a person to; to personify.

3. To assume, or to represent, the person or character of; to personate; as, he impersonated Macbeth.

Benedict impersonated his age. --Milman.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Cite This Source
Language Translation for : impersonate
Spanish: imitar; personificar; hacerse pasar por alguien,
German: darstellen,
Japanese: ～に扮する
More Translations »

impersonate 
1624, "to invest with a personality," from L. in- "in" + persona "person." Sense of "to assume the person or character of" is first recorded 1715. Impersonator in this sense is from 1853.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source

Main Entry: im·per·son·ate
Pronunciation: im-'p&r-s&-"nAt
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: -at·ed; -at·ing
: to assume (another's or a fictitious identity) without authority and with fraudulent intent <impersonate a police officer> <impersonated a public servant by saying he was from the water department> —im·per·son·a·tor /-"nA-t&r/ noun
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see impersonate on Thesaurus | Reference