Take off ape (7)
I believe the answer is:
imitate
I believe this is a double definition.
'take off' is the first definition.
(thesaurus)
'ape' is the second definition.
('imitate' can be a synonym of 'ape')
(Other definitions for imitate that I've seen before include "I tame it (anag)" , "Fake" , "Copy, simulate" , "Copy someone" , "Take as a model" .)