impersonation

Everyday

1. A funny copy of someone's voice, way of speaking or actions. tree →
2. Pretending to be someone else to trick people, which can be a crime. tree →

In the lessons

In everyday life: a comedian's impersonations; a child's impersonation of a grumpy cat. In online safety and law: impersonation of a bank, a company or an official is used in scams and phishing. Phrases: do an impersonation of, a brilliant impersonation, identity impersonation.

Examples

• She does a brilliant impersonation of our dog barking. tree →
• The class laughed at his impersonation of a pirate. tree →
• The fake email was an impersonation of a real company. tree →
• Impersonation of a police officer is a crime. tree →
• The comedian's impersonations of famous singers were amazing. tree →
• We learned how to spot impersonation in online messages. tree →

Note

Countable for each act («two impersonations») and uncountable for the general idea. Verb «impersonate». An impression is the same as a funny impersonation: «do an impression».