scapegoat
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Pronunciation[change]
- (Canada) (US) IPA (key): /ˈskeɪpˌɡoʊt/
- (UK) IPA (key): /ˈskeɪpˌɡəʊt/
Audio (US) (file) Audio (AU) (file)
Noun[change]
- (countable), (biblical) A scapegoat is a goat that was released into the wilderness while another was killed in a ritual.
- (countable) A scapegoat is someone who is punished for a mistake that someone else made.
- Bobby broke the window, but Cynthia was made into the scapegoat and had to pay Mr. Lee for it.
Related words[change]
Verb[change]
Plain form |
Third-person singular |
Past tense |
Past participle |
Present participle |
- (transitive) If you scapegoat someone, you punish them for someone else's mistake.
Usage note[change]
A word derived from scapegoat, scapegoatee, means the same thing as the agent noun scapegoat, although the form with the suffix "-ee", i.e. scapegoatee, is exclusively used in the sense of the agent noun of being a victim of blame-shifting.