as in standards
something set up as an example against which others of the same type are compared
this prize-winning biography will be the benchmark against which all others will be judged in future years
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Recent Examples of benchmarks
Even this morning, with news of an agreement to reopen the strait, the standard crude oil benchmarks (WTI and Brent) were still above $80 a barrel.
—
George Calhoun, Forbes.com, 18 June 2026
Trends in home design can either cement themselves as benchmarks of contemporary living or flame out fast.
—Mary Holland, Architectural Digest, 16 June 2026
The company hopes those benchmarks can serve as the foundation for a futures market, much as West Texas Intermediate crude oil underpins energy derivatives.
—Yun Li, CNBC, 16 June 2026
Both oil benchmarks were trading at around $70 or less before the war began, but shot up above $110 at certain points during the war.
—Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 15 June 2026
For both benchmarks, those closing prices were their lowest since the first week of March, just days after the war with Iran was launched.
—Steve Kopack, NBC news, 15 June 2026
Ohio pays nursing homes a daily rate for Medicaid residents and provides additional payments to facilities that meet certain quality benchmarks.
—Brittany Miller, FOXNews.com, 11 June 2026
How the stock trades in its first weeks will ripple across private markets, impacting valuation benchmarks for Anthropic and OpenAI, rearranging Silicon Valley’s implicit venture-fund hierarchies, and determining how much mainstream capital other space-tech companies can attract in SpaceX’s wake.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 11 June 2026
Splitting up a portfolio this way can ensure diversification and help hold portfolio management teams accountable by giving them clear benchmarks to beat.
—Bloomberg, Oc Register, 10 June 2026
George Calhoun, Forbes.com, 18 June 2026
Trends in home design can either cement themselves as benchmarks of contemporary living or flame out fast.
—Mary Holland, Architectural Digest, 16 June 2026
The company hopes those benchmarks can serve as the foundation for a futures market, much as West Texas Intermediate crude oil underpins energy derivatives.
—Yun Li, CNBC, 16 June 2026
Both oil benchmarks were trading at around $70 or less before the war began, but shot up above $110 at certain points during the war.
—Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 15 June 2026
For both benchmarks, those closing prices were their lowest since the first week of March, just days after the war with Iran was launched.
—Steve Kopack, NBC news, 15 June 2026
Ohio pays nursing homes a daily rate for Medicaid residents and provides additional payments to facilities that meet certain quality benchmarks.
—Brittany Miller, FOXNews.com, 11 June 2026
How the stock trades in its first weeks will ripple across private markets, impacting valuation benchmarks for Anthropic and OpenAI, rearranging Silicon Valley’s implicit venture-fund hierarchies, and determining how much mainstream capital other space-tech companies can attract in SpaceX’s wake.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 11 June 2026
Splitting up a portfolio this way can ensure diversification and help hold portfolio management teams accountable by giving them clear benchmarks to beat.
—Bloomberg, Oc Register, 10 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for benchmarks
Noun
-
The service Generations of LMR ownership have upheld high standards for property staff to deliver top-notch western hospitality.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
16 June 2026
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Activities include vacation standards like pools and a beach club along with less typical offerings like horseback riding on the beach, beach shelling by golf cart, and the resort’s Hawk Walk.—
Beth Luberecki,
USA Today,
16 June 2026
Noun
-
An audit of the hospital system with the steepest rise in this code found that fewer than 20% of the cases actually met the clinical criteria for a diagnosis.—
Whizy Kim,
Fortune,
12 June 2026
-
Under those criteria, only Donalds would qualify.—
Romy Ellenbogen Herald,
Miami Herald,
12 June 2026
Noun
-
Sotiroff agrees that bitcoin is difficult to value using traditional financial metrics.—
Mike Winters,
CNBC,
12 June 2026
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One of the most revealing metrics is workflow interruption frequency, or how often employees must switch tools, reenter data or manually bridge disconnected systems.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes.com,
12 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Benchmarks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/benchmarks. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.
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