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Formulate vs Emulate - What's the difference?

formulate | emulate |

As verbs the difference between formulate and emulate

is that formulate is to reduce to, or express in, a formula; to put in a clear and definite form of statement or expression while emulate is to attempt to equal or be the same as.

As an adjective emulate is

striving to excel; ambitious; emulous.

formulate

English

(Webster 1913)

Verb

  • To reduce to, or express in, a formula; to put in a clear and definite form of statement or expression.
  • *
  • Another source of evidence supporting the conclusion that children learn language by formulating a set of rules comes from the errors'' that they produce. A case in point are overgeneralized past tense forms like ''comed'', ''goed'', ''seed'', ''buyed'', ''bringed , etc. frequently used by young children. [...]

    emulate

    English

    Alternative forms

    * (archaic)

    Verb

    (emulat)
  • To attempt to equal or be the same as.
  • To copy or imitate, especially a person.
  • * {{quote-news
  • , year=2011 , date=October 1 , author=Saj Chowdhury , title=Wolverhampton 1 - 2 Newcastle , work=BBC Sport citation , page= , passage=The Magpies are unbeaten and enjoying their best run since 1994, although few would have thought the class of 2011 would come close to emulating their ancestors.}}
  • (obsolete) To feel a rivalry with; to be jealous of, to envy.
  • * 1624 , John Smith, Generall Historie , in Kupperman 1988, p. 146:
  • But the councell then present emulating my successe, would not thinke it fit to spare me fortie men to be hazzarded in those unknowne regions [...].
  • (computing) of a program or device: to imitate another program or device
  • See also

    * mimic * copy * imitate * simulate

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • (obsolete) Striving to excel; ambitious; emulous.
  • * Shakespeare
  • A most emulate pride.
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