emulation

n. imitation, simulation; imitation of the work environment of another type of system (Computers)

An emulator duplicates (provides an emulation of) the functions of one system with a different system, so that the second system behaves like (and appears to be) the first system. This focus on exact reproduction of external behavior is in contrast to simulation, which concerns an abstract model of the system being simulated, often considering internal state.
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Noun
1. ambition to equal or excel
(hypernym) ambition, aspiration, dream
(derivation) emulate
2. (computer science) technique of one machine obtaining the same results as another
(hypernym) technique
(hyponym) terminal emulation
(derivation) emulate
(classification) computer science, computing
3. effort to equal or surpass another
(hypernym) imitation
(derivation) emulate

n. emulation, imitation of the work environment of another type of system (Computers)

n. emulation, imitation, simulation; imitation of the work environment of another type of system (Computers)