1
as in victim
a person or thing that is the object of abuse, criticism, or ridicule
the hapless vice president quickly became the favorite target of late-night comedians
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in joke
a person or thing that is made fun of
a badly made TV commercial that became the target of lots of jokes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in goal
something that one hopes or intends to accomplish
our target is to raise $100,000 for a new playground by August
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to taunt
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of target
Brent Lang, Variety, 18 Mar. 2025
In 1950s America, Jews were central targets of McCarthyism and the Red Scare.
—Adam Jaffe, New York Daily News, 18 Mar. 2025
Brittney Melton, NPR, 19 Mar. 2025
The plan was led by the president's National Security Council (NSC) and involved at least seven national security agencies working with European allies to disrupt plots targeting Europe and the United States, seven former officials who participated in the working groups told Reuters.
—Erin Banco and Mari Saito, USA TODAY, 19 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for target
Noun
The National Association of Theatre Owners, popularly known around the movie business as NATO, will no longer be confused with a favorite target of Donald Trump’s ire.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 18 Mar. 2025
In 1950s America, Jews were central targets of McCarthyism and the Red Scare.
—Adam Jaffe, New York Daily News, 18 Mar. 2025
Verb
Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a limited ceasefire in Ukraine yesterday, where the Kremlin agreed to stop targeting Ukraine's energy facilities for 30 days.
—Brittney Melton, NPR, 19 Mar. 2025
The plan was led by the president's National Security Council (NSC) and involved at least seven national security agencies working with European allies to disrupt plots targeting Europe and the United States, seven former officials who participated in the working groups told Reuters.
—Erin Banco and Mari Saito, USA TODAY, 19 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for target
Recent Examples of Synonyms for target
Noun
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Authorities struggled to identify and process all of the victims.—
arkansasonline.com,
arkansasonline.com,
16 Mar. 2025
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Paying ransoms does not guarantee a return to normal business operations, and 35% of victims who paid a ransom, according to the in-house analysis of data, either did not receive decryption keys or received corrupted keys.—
Davey Winder,
Forbes,
16 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Conan O'Brien Named Host Of The 2025 Oscars By Megan Cartwright Deputy Entertainment Editor Newsweek Is A Trust Project Member news article 0 Conan O'Brien revealed on his podcast that part of his Oscars promo joke was cut by the Academy.—
Mark Davis,
Newsweek,
14 Mar. 2025
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The response to Glaser’s hosting gig on social media appeared to be overwhelmingly positive, after a show that included jokes about Diddy, Selena Gomez, Wicked and an Adam Sandler/Timothee Chalamet bit that had a callback earlier this month at the Oscars.—
Katie Atkinson,
Billboard,
13 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The goal: Eliminate the gross receipts tax portion of BIRT and reduce the net income portion by half by fiscal year 2039.—
Mike D'Onofrio,
Axios,
14 Mar. 2025
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Even when new goals have been reached—voting rights, equal pay, equal employment opportunity—there’s still the monumental amount of work to be done on the other side of the victory in turning those achievements into cultural reality.—
Cassidy Randall,
TIME,
14 Mar. 2025
Verb
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President Donald Trump taunted Democrats and fueled new litigation against his contentious policies during his speech to Congress Tuesday while basking in the cheers and applause of fellow Republicans.—
Bart Jansen,
USA TODAY,
5 Mar. 2025
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After a flurry of offense, Paul taunted Canada and was mauled by Priest because of it.—
Alfred Konuwa,
Forbes,
2 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Orb-weaving spiders are known for crafting intricate and highly organized webs to hunt prey.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes,
9 Mar. 2025
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Nothing has been beyond Trump’s boorish reach, not even a Kennedy Center musical about a shark who befriends would-be prey or, briefly, the building that houses the American Red Cross.—
Philip Elliott,
TIME,
5 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The Baltimore native is one of five finalists for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award, thus some NBA mock drafts project him as a lottery pick this summer.—
Sam Cohn,
Baltimore Sun,
9 Mar. 2025
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LeBron was angered and took to social media this week when ESPN’s NBA mock draft excluded Bronny from this summer’s draft and projected him instead for the 2025 draft.—
Greg Cote,
Miami Herald,
4 Mar. 2025
Noun
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That’s because Trump’s aims are often contradictory.—
David Goldman,
CNN,
11 Mar. 2025
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The move will give ArcGIS users access to high-resolution, photorealistic 3D images of urban areas, with the aim of boosting industries like urban planning, real estate and public infrastructure.—
Faisal Kutty,
Newsweek,
11 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Thus, lawsuits that are designed to harass folks into shutting up about something, or to retaliate against them for exercising their free speech rights, are thrown out of court very quickly.—
Jay Adkisson,
Forbes,
9 Mar. 2025
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Yet time and time again, those under orders keep their guns, give them to a friend or family member or find other ways to obtain one — then use them to harass, shoot or kill those who sought protection or others.—
Angie DiMichele,
Sun Sentinel,
8 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Target.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/target. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.
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