I have to disagree with the first post here. While "intimate" does indeed most commonly mean "familiar or close" as he states, it has a less common meaning that is consistent with the other words you mention. 1. Hint: to request something or give information in an indirect way. "When I asked the teacher for help on my test, he only hinted at the answer." 2. Imply: not saying something directly, but the meaning is still there. "While he didn't say what he thinks, his opinion is implied." 3. Intimate: as I said above, this is the less common use of the word, but it can be similar to "to hint". "She intimated that she had considered quitting the team."

To hint means to suggest something but not directly. To imply means almost the opposite, to strongly suggest the truth of something. I do not think intimate is the word you are looking for as that word means to be familiar or close with someone. The word you might be looking for is "imitate" which means copy someone or something else's actions.

Intimate as a verb means something like to hint delicately, or discreetly.