1
as in victims
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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in jokes
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 goals
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
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of targets
Fatima Hussein, Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2026
Each of the plaintiffs in this new suit, excluding Colin Albert, are the targets of Read’s own lawsuit first filed in Bristol County and then transferred to federal court in Boston.
—Flint McColgan, Boston Herald, 16 Apr. 2026
The Moon’s polar cold traps, including Shackleton, are attractive targets for future exploration.
—Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 16 Apr. 2026
Israel has continued to hit Hezbollah targets.
—Joe Walsh, CBS News, 16 Apr. 2026
Netflix reportedly could pay up to $600 million for InterPositive, contingent on it hitting certain performance targets.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 16 Apr. 2026
But not all of its targets proved realistic.
—Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 16 Apr. 2026
Al Qaeda targets were listed in Excel.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2026
The internet of propaganda is not the real world, and however much bluster there is in the daily CENTCOM declaration of how effective their strikes are, Tehran is far worse off after more than 13,000 targets have been hit.
—Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 15 Apr. 2026
Noun
And some in the administration believe there are still more economic targets that can be hit that would put the economic hurt on Iran, including bonyads, the charitable trusts that account for a significant percentage of the Iranian economy.
—Fatima Hussein, Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2026
Each of the plaintiffs in this new suit, excluding Colin Albert, are the targets of Read’s own lawsuit first filed in Bristol County and then transferred to federal court in Boston.
—Flint McColgan, Boston Herald, 16 Apr. 2026
The Moon’s polar cold traps, including Shackleton, are attractive targets for future exploration.
—Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 16 Apr. 2026
Israel has continued to hit Hezbollah targets.
—Joe Walsh, CBS News, 16 Apr. 2026
Netflix reportedly could pay up to $600 million for InterPositive, contingent on it hitting certain performance targets.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 16 Apr. 2026
But not all of its targets proved realistic.
—Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 16 Apr. 2026
Al Qaeda targets were listed in Excel.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2026
The internet of propaganda is not the real world, and however much bluster there is in the daily CENTCOM declaration of how effective their strikes are, Tehran is far worse off after more than 13,000 targets have been hit.
—Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 15 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for targets
Noun
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One of the victims, a 36-year-old man, suffered multiple gunshots to his body and was pronounced dead at the scene.—
William Lee,
Chicago Tribune,
18 Apr. 2026
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The three other victims were taken to the hospital by private vehicle and later released, according to authorities.—
Doug Myers,
CBS News,
18 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The jokes — good, bad and cheap — come non-stop in then show’s 90 minutes, and are filled and sometimes pummeled with pop culture and brand-name references, puns, anachronistic humor, and naughty bits.—
Frank Rizzo,
Variety,
13 Apr. 2026
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Whitehall’s opening monologue included jokes about his upcoming wedding (to model partner Roxy Horner), largely lamenting the cost and need to socialize with so many people.—
Max Goldbart,
Deadline,
13 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Wallstedt allowed only 12 goals over his last six starts.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
15 Apr. 2026
-
Kuruc earned all-state honors last season as a sophomore, scoring 24 goals and setting a program record with 26 assists.—
Steve Millar,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Owen is a serial killer who, much like Zodiac, taunts the police with phone calls threatening the murder of innocent citizens.—
Rosy Cordero,
Deadline,
14 Apr. 2026
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So much for Anthropic's Super Bowl taunts.—
Alexei Oreskovic,
Fortune,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The Sounders capitalize on very specific prey – ghost shrimp – in Puget Sound.—
Daniel Crocker,
The Conversation,
13 Apr. 2026
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Great white sharks were seen as apex predators, so many people struggled to see them as prey for orcas.—
Michael H Gavshon,
CBS News,
12 Apr. 2026
Noun
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As Rose’s impoverished yet imperious mother Ruth, Parson’s dry deliveries offer great comic ballast to this ship of fools.—
Frank Rizzo,
Variety,
13 Apr. 2026
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McGinn sets high standards in training and during games and does not suffer fools.—
Jacob Tanswell,
New York Times,
25 Mar. 2026
Noun
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This material is for illustration and discussion purposes and not intended to be, nor construed as, financial, legal, tax or investment advice.—
Katie Stockton,
CNBC,
13 Apr. 2026
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The agreement says that the flag cannot be removed, except for normal maintenance purposes.—
Jesse Zanger,
CBS News,
13 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Whereas fast fashion baits consumers with poorly made clothing available for a limited time, Jendue takes a more elevated approach with high quality denim from Turkey.—
Angela Velasquez,
Sourcing Journal,
30 Mar. 2026
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Setting traps and baits eradicates or, at least, discourages these pests from tunneling through your garden and nibbling roots to damage perennials and shrubs.—
Barbara Gillette,
The Spruce,
15 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Targets.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/targets. Accessed 20 Apr. 2026.
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