Synonyms of yardsticks

yardsticks

noun

plural of yardstick

as in standards

something set up as an example against which others of the same type are compared

this essay will be the yardstick by which I grade the others

Synonyms & Similar Words

• standards
• criteria
• benchmarks
• metrics
• measures
• barometers
• touchstones
• grades
• examples
• norms
• pars
• rules
• gold standards
• bars
• marks
• instances
• averages
• pinnacles
• cases
• summits
• peaks
• zeniths
• meridians
• apexes
• acmes

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• deviations
• abnormalities
• aberrations

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of yardsticks

Boards would be well served to keep the succession yardsticks focused on genuine performance metrics rather than fact-free dogma related to CEO age, longevity or tenure. — Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 1 Oct. 2026

Steve Sosnick, chief strategist at Interactive Brokers, is following his own yardsticks, and said that the sanguine performance this summer of the S & P 500, which is near all-time highs, has masked a high degree of individual stock volatility. — Sarah Min, CNBC, 27 Aug. 2026

And according to my scorecard, which averaged grades across five economic yardsticks, Powell’s eight years at the helm earned the second-worst California-centric score compared with the previous four central bank bosses. — Jonathan Lansner, Oc Register, 15 May 2026

The cleverness of the theme, the aesthetic of the grid, the difficulty of the puzzle itself — these are all common yardsticks for measuring a crossword and are entirely subjective. — Sean McGowan, New York Times, 24 Apr. 2026

Other yardsticks show a similar trend, such as a March 18 survey commissioned by the California Democratic Party showing the two GOP candidates on top with Swalwell, Porter and Steyer in a three-way tie for third. — Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 27 Mar. 2026

The Red Scare period of blacklisting is a case study of the dangers of using political yardsticks to measure journalists. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 Mar. 2026

It is flanked on all sides by footlong rulers (emblazoned, like the yardsticks, with an assortment of penitent phrases including YES, SISTER and NO, SISTER) marking the hours. — Alex Jovanovich, Artforum, 1 Jan. 2026

In the matter of handmade placards—Magic Marker on cardboard, duct-taped to wooden yardsticks—there was a certain amount of politico-literary one-upmanship. — Jill Lepore, New Yorker, 10 Nov. 2025