copy
Definitions
A thing made to be exactly like another; a single example of a book, document, or recording.
复制品，副本；一本书、文件或录音的一份。
The written text prepared for printing, especially in advertising or journalism.
（尤指广告或新闻中）待印的文字，文案。
To make a reproduction of something.
复制，誊写。
To imitate someone's behavior, style, or work.
模仿（某人的行为、风格或作品）。
Root Breakdown
Root-derivedFrom Latin copia, "abundance." To copy is to make more of something — one becomes two. The same root names both the act (verb) and the thing produced (noun), and in publishing even the text waiting to be printed.
Root copy still carries 4 more wordsWhy It Means This
The leap from "abundance" (copia) to "duplicate" happened through medieval scribes, for whom having copia of a text meant the power to reproduce it. The act of reproducing makes a thing plentiful, so the word for plenty became the word for a reproduction.
Common Collocations
- 1.make a copy制作副本
- 2.a copy of……的副本
- 3.hard copy纸质副本
- 4.soft copy电子副本
- 5.copy and paste复制粘贴
- 6.carbon copy副本抄送
Example Sentences
- 1.
Please send me a copy of the signed contract by email.
- 2.
She bought three copies of the novel for her friends.
- 3.
He copied the file to a backup drive before the trip.
- 4.
Kids often copy the way their parents speak.
- 5.
The agency wrote fresh copy for the new ad campaign.
Easily Confused
copy vs duplicate vs replica — copy is the everyday word for any reproduction. duplicate stresses an exact, often official second of the same (a duplicate key, a duplicate receipt). replica is a careful physical reproduction of a notable object (a replica of the statue). You photocopy a copy, cut a duplicate key, and build a replica.
Synonym Comparison
- copy — the broadest, neutral word for any reproduction
- duplicate — an exact second of the same item, often official
- replica — a faithful physical reproduction of a notable object
- reproduction — formal; often of art or printed images
- imitation — stresses copying a style or appearance, sometimes inferior