as in standards
something set up as an example against which others of the same type are compared
a legendary Broadway flop that has subsequently become the barometer by which failure in the theater is judged
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Recent Examples of barometers
Champions provide barometers, perhaps few like Oklahoma City, which threatens the league with a decade-long runway of contendership.
—
Joel Lorenzi, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2026
With hundreds of millions of workers hunting for jobs and employers posting open roles in real time, LinkedIn acts as one of the clearest barometers of what’s actually happening on the ground—and its managing director for EMEA, Sue Duke, is not buying the AI apocalypse narrative.
—Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 5 Dec. 2025
Why are both movies potential barometers for the future?
—Nancy Tartaglione, Deadline, 24 Nov. 2025
Kenny Chesney walks around office on the 72nd floor of One World Trade Center in New York City, peering out the floor-to-ceiling windows in search of his skyline barometers—the Statue of Liberty, the Brooklyn Bridge and one of his favorite places to perform, MetLife Stadium.
—Mandy Taheri, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2025
Airports really are barometers.
—Imran Khalid, Boston Herald, 27 Oct. 2025
Since the Academy expanded the best picture field in 2009, TIFF Audience Award winners have become reliable Oscar barometers.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 12 Sep. 2025
The race was seen as a key pickup opportunity for Democrats in their quest to win control of the House, and one of the early barometers to watch on Tuesday.
—Nathaniel Weixel, The Hill, 6 Nov. 2024
Joel Lorenzi, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2026
With hundreds of millions of workers hunting for jobs and employers posting open roles in real time, LinkedIn acts as one of the clearest barometers of what’s actually happening on the ground—and its managing director for EMEA, Sue Duke, is not buying the AI apocalypse narrative.
—Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 5 Dec. 2025
Why are both movies potential barometers for the future?
—Nancy Tartaglione, Deadline, 24 Nov. 2025
Kenny Chesney walks around office on the 72nd floor of One World Trade Center in New York City, peering out the floor-to-ceiling windows in search of his skyline barometers—the Statue of Liberty, the Brooklyn Bridge and one of his favorite places to perform, MetLife Stadium.
—Mandy Taheri, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2025
Airports really are barometers.
—Imran Khalid, Boston Herald, 27 Oct. 2025
Since the Academy expanded the best picture field in 2009, TIFF Audience Award winners have become reliable Oscar barometers.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 12 Sep. 2025
The race was seen as a key pickup opportunity for Democrats in their quest to win control of the House, and one of the early barometers to watch on Tuesday.
—Nathaniel Weixel, The Hill, 6 Nov. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for barometers
Noun
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Capping those rates could backfire, resulting in significantly stricter lending standards and making credit unavailable to lower-income people or those with lower credit scores.—
Luciana Lopez,
CNN Money,
10 Jan. 2026
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Beyond money, other issues expected to be hammered out in CBA talks include the length of the season, facility and travel standards, retirement benefits and changes to rookie deals.—
Jacob Feldman,
Sportico.com,
9 Jan. 2026
Noun
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It was later determined, however, that the case did not meet authorities' acceptance criteria at the time.—
Nicholas Rice,
PEOPLE,
10 Jan. 2026
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Prosecutors said last weekend that the legal criteria to detain the bar's owners had so far not been met.—
Reuters,
NBC news,
9 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Publish benchmarks, timelines, and consequences.—
Tharo Khun,
Sourcing Journal,
8 Jan. 2026
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Engagement without benchmarks can become a reward for inertia.—
Ricardo Torres,
Time,
8 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The six nominees were selected from among the 25 most popular podcasts deemed eligible and include both audio-only and video podcasts, based on Luminate listener metrics.—
Todd Spangler,
Variety,
12 Jan. 2026
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Petch suggests looking beyond the usual metrics, such as inflation rates and the Federal Reserve policy.—
Sharon Wu,
CBS News,
12 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Barometers.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/barometers. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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