Dictionary entry

Mimic

Webster's Dictionary 1913

{ Mim″ic (?), Mim″ic‐al (?), } a. [L. mimicus, Gr. �, fr. � mime: cf. F. mimique. See Mime.]

1. Imitative; mimetic.

Oft, in her absence, mimic fancy wakes

To imitate her. Milton.

Man is, of all creatures, the most mimical. W. Wotton.

2. Consisting of, or formed by, imitation; imitated; as, mimic gestures. “Mimic hootings.” Wordsworth.

3. (Min.) Imitative; characterized by resemblance to other forms; — applied to crystals which by twinning resemble simple forms of a higher grade of symmetry.

Mimic often implies something droll or ludicrous, and is less dignified than imitative.

Mimic beetle(Zoöl.), a beetle that feigns death when disturbed, esp. the species of Hister and allied genera.