Word | emulate |
---|---|
Date | July 8, 2020 |
Type | verb |
Syllables | EM-yuh-layt |
Etymology | If imitation really is the sincerest form of flattery, then past speakers of English clearly had a great admiration for the Latin language. The verb emulate joined the ranks of Latin-derived English terms in the 16th century. It comes from aemulus, a Latin term for "rivaling" or "envious." Two related adjectives—emulate and emulous—appeared within a half-century of the verb emulate. Both mean "striving to emulate; marked by a desire to imitate or rival" or sometimes "jealous," but emulous is rare these days and the adjective emulate is obsolete. The latter did have a brief moment of glory, however, when William Shakespeare used it in Hamlet: "Our last king, Whose image even but now appear'd to us, Was, as you know, by Fortinbras of Norway, Thereto prick'd on by a most emulate pride, Dar'd to the combat...." |
Examples | Younger children will often try to emulate the behavior of their older siblings. "As part of its subsequent push to emulate the West, Meiji-era Japan encouraged the production of domestic versions of that same whiskey. Japanese distillers often used sweet potatoes, which were abundant, but they produced a much different spirit than the barley, corn and rye used in Scotland and America." — Clay Risen, The New York Times, 29 May 2020 |
Definition | 1 a : to strive to equal or excel b : imitate; especially : to imitate by means of hardware or software that permits programs written for one computer to be run on another computer 2 : to equal or approach equality with |
Tags: wordoftheday::verb
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