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
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of target
Andrew Knoll, Daily News, 7 Feb. 2026
Trump hasn't announced his next target.
—Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 7 Feb. 2026
Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Feb. 2026
Right guard Anthony Bradford is the Seahawks lineman the Patriots should target with 1-on-1 matchups against Barmore and Williams.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 8 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for target
Noun
Trevor Moore, winger, C Warren Foegele, winger, D- Moore scored 31 goals two years ago but is barely on target to break double digits, with injuries again being an issue while his defensive impact has receded.
—Andrew Knoll, Daily News, 7 Feb. 2026
Trump hasn't announced his next target.
—Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 7 Feb. 2026
Verb
Including an extra tight end to create jumbo formations would also target one of the Seahawks’ few weaknesses on defense, while giving New England options in short-yardage situations.
—Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Feb. 2026
Right guard Anthony Bradford is the Seahawks lineman the Patriots should target with 1-on-1 matchups against Barmore and Williams.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 8 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for target
Recent Examples of Synonyms for target
Noun
-
Family members of the shooting victims cried as the sentence was handed down.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
14 Feb. 2026
-
The victim was taken to Hartford Hospital with injuries that were not believed to be life-threatening, according to state police.—
Justin Muszynski,
Hartford Courant,
13 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Talk about the weather, add some jokes in there about some of the guys on the team and just stuff like that.—
Kyle Feldscher,
CNN Money,
5 Feb. 2026
-
The event, held at the Montana Hotel in Pétion-Ville, was the butt of jokes on social media amid questions over the group’s authority to act.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
If your goal is to get at the truth, or at least our closest approximation of it at the present time, the way to do that is to be scrupulous and forthright about the strengths and weaknesses of every link in your chain of argument.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
10 Feb. 2026
-
The goal of any action, however, remains something of a mystery.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Another child care center director recounted how vehicles full of taunting men have driven by more than once.—
Frederick Melo,
Twin Cities,
6 Feb. 2026
-
This question has tantalized and taunted Bulls fans for years — and this trade deadline is no different.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
In the past, archaeologists had assumed humans made their way to the Arctic by following musk oxen and other onshore prey.—
K. R. Callaway,
Scientific American,
9 Feb. 2026
-
For example, if subjected to high humidity, potato plants may fall prey to fungal diseases that will weaken them and slow growth.—
David Beaulieu,
The Spruce,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Sadly, OpenAI plays us for fools.—
Jim Cramer,
CNBC,
8 Feb. 2026
-
For years, defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo has been a wizard at designing blitzes that fool quarterbacks.—
Sam McDowell
February 5,
Kansas City Star,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
In creating the following list of books to be classed under the heading of essential Afghan reading, my aim was to highlight books that focus on the human.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
5 Feb. 2026
-
Seizing on the frigid weather, Russia has launched an all-out assault on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, with the apparent aim of keeping up pressure amid ongoing peace negotiations—and sapping public morale.—
Michael Holtz,
New Yorker,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The Seattle defense, which nicknamed itself the Dark Side, lived in quarterback Drake Maye’s face, sacking him six times and harassing him into three turnovers.—
Jerry Brewer,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Callella has been arrested on suspicion of transmitting a demand for ransom in interstate commerce, and without disclosing his identity, utilizing a telecommunications device with the intent to abuse, threaten or harass a person.—
Richard Winton,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Target.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/target. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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