imitation vs emulation

imitation and emulation both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
imitation	Yes	Yes	No	No
emulation	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, emulation is a hyponym of imitation; that is, emulation is a word with a more specific, narrower meaning than imitation:

Other hyponyms of imitation include echo, mimicry, Byronism.

imitation (noun)	emulation (noun)
copying (or trying to copy) the actions of someone else	effort to equal or surpass another
something copied or derived from an original	(computer science) technique of one machine obtaining the same results as another
the doctrine that representations of nature or human behavior should be accurate imitations	ambition to equal or excel
a representation of a person that is exaggerated for comic effect

imitation (adjective)	emulation (adjective)
not genuine or real; being an imitation of the genuine article