English–Japanese

“imitate” in Japanese

Japanese

Also真似る (maneru)

Pronunciation

Romajinarau

Example

私は先生の話し方にならいます。watashi wa sen sei no hana shi kata ni na ra i ma su

I imitate my teacher's way of speaking.

Illustration for ならう (imitate)

How to say “imitate” in Japanese

“Imitate” in Japanese is ならう (narau).

It describes following a model closely so that one's actions or manner resemble the model's.

Full entry for ならう: usage tips, similar words and word origin

Example sentences with ならう

先輩の仕事ぶりにならって、効率のよい方法を試しました。sen pai no shi goto bu ri ni na ra tte kō ritsu no yo i hō hō o tame shi ma shi ta

Following the example of my senior colleague, I tried an efficient method.

Tips for using ならう

  • The verb ならう (narau) often sounds more formal than a casual description of copying someone, so it commonly appears when the model is a recognized style, method, or tradition.

Other Japanese words for “imitate”

彼は兄の話し方を真似ます。kare wa ani no hana shi kata o mane ma su

He imitates the way his older brother speaks.

“imitate” in other languages