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
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Recent Examples of yardsticks
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
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
The gauge is based on short interest, margin debt, sentiment surveys and several other yardsticks used to gauge what investors are thinking and doing.
—
Jeff Cox,
CNBC,
17 Nov. 2025
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
The machine learning field is moving fast, and the yardsticks used measure progress in it are having to race to keep up.
—
Dina Genkina,
IEEE Spectrum,
10 Sep. 2025
Traditional yardsticks like revenue and profit matter less than the company’s ETH stash.
—
Trefis Team,
Forbes.com,
25 Aug. 2025
Jonathan Lansner,
Oc Register,
15 May 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
The gauge is based on short interest, margin debt, sentiment surveys and several other yardsticks used to gauge what investors are thinking and doing.
—
Jeff Cox,
CNBC,
17 Nov. 2025
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
The machine learning field is moving fast, and the yardsticks used measure progress in it are having to race to keep up.
—
Dina Genkina,
IEEE Spectrum,
10 Sep. 2025
Traditional yardsticks like revenue and profit matter less than the company’s ETH stash.
—
Trefis Team,
Forbes.com,
25 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for yardsticks
Noun
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The United Kingdom is on course for its sixth prime minister in some seven years, as one political leader after another proves no match for a stubbornly weak economy, which has weighed on incomes and living standards, wearing down the electorate.
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The sheriff said the agency remains committed to transparency, professionalism and ethical standards.
Noun
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Personalized messaging, clear criteria and occasional human touchpoints can go a long way.
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Chrysler and Dodge didn’t meet the study’s award criteria.
Noun
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The authors recommended that the US government and its commercial and international partners establish benchmarks for interpreting hostile behavior in space.
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The benchmarks that matter for this argument are the security ones.
Noun
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This year also highlighted a change in how creator value is measured; traditional metrics like followers and views are diminishing in importance.
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The city also collected no other performance metrics because the pilot was meant to test the robot before any expansion.
Cite this Entry
“Yardsticks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/yardsticks. Accessed 2 Jul. 2026.
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