LIGHTNING ROD Synonyms: 43 Similar and Opposite Words

lightning rod

noun

Definition of lightning rod

as in sitting duck

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of lightning rod Jonathan Isaac Orlando Magic forward Jonathan Isaac became one of the NBA's most prominent voices defending individual choice during the pandemic, after becoming a cultural lightning rod for refusing to kneel for the anthem in the NBA Bubble. — Jon Root Outkick, FOXNews.com, 7 Aug. 2026 Schumer has become a lightning rod in some Democratic primary races as many progressive candidates accuse him of putting his thumb on the scale to back moderate candidates, who tend to be older and more pro-Israel. — Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 6 Aug. 2026 The mogul has only become a greater cultural lightning rod since then with a relentless series of social media trolls and the platforming of numerous conspiracy theories. — Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 5 Aug. 2026 The company and its surveillance devices have become a lightning rod for anxieties around surveillance in the US, embodying concerns about privacy, tech industry oversight, and police abuse of power all in one public gadget. — Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 5 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for lightning rod

Recent Examples of Synonyms for lightning rod

Noun

Only the ridiculous American League could turn Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow from a sitting duck into a potential candidate for Executive of the Year in less than a week.

— Ken Rosenthal, New York Times, 30 June 2026
In Ukraine, tanks—the backbone of 20th-century armies—have become sitting ducks for drones.

— Nancy A. Youssef, The Atlantic, 17 June 2026

Definition of sitting duck

Noun

The former Maple Leaf was a whipping boy in Toronto whenever the Leafs couldn't get past the second round of the playoffs, but his first postseason in Vegas has been downright magical.

— Austin Perry OutKick, FOXNews.com, 30 May 2026
The middle class or big corporations don’t want to become the mayor’s whipping boy.

— Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 20 Feb. 2026

Definition of whipping boy

Noun

Transits are what revealed most of the more than 6,000 exoplanets now known, and Roman’s planners expect the bulge’s target-rich environment to yield on order of 100,000 more.

— Adam Kovac, Scientific American, 29 Aug. 2026
As a kinetic interceptor, Seeker appears designed to physically strike its target rather than rely on a conventional air-defense warhead.

— Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of target

Noun

Homecoming aside, there’s still the Trawler to worry about, a fact we’re reminded of when another victim turns up on a playground, this time with a pentagram carved into his back and fish corpses shoved into his wounds.

— Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 27 Aug. 2026
After Bateman’s September 2022 arrest, his child victims were placed in protective custody.

— Christina Coulter, PEOPLE, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of victim

Noun

To find the standouts, one Glamour editor tested 15 pairs with everything from jeans to formalwear, evaluating comfort, how well each one disappeared under clothes—and most importantly how lifted, rounded, and shapely the butt looked.

— Malia Griggs, Glamour, 28 Aug. 2026
The vaping industry says the technology saves lives and the cartridges are not nearly as bad a blight as cigarette butts.

— Susanne Rust Follow, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of butt

Noun

Granted exclusive access to the nest, the BBC witnessed some of the raptors’ striking feeding behavior, in which the male drops prey in midair and the female rolls upside down to snatch it in her talons.

— Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 25 Aug. 2026
Nearly an hour after a pod separated a humpback whale calf from its mother, the orcas resurfaced carrying their prey between them.

— Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes.com, 23 Aug. 2026

Definition of prey

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lightning rod

lightning rods

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“Lightning rod.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lightning%20rod. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of lightning rod

noun

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